​Trustees decide to retract job offer after serious allegations emerged

Trustees at the Samaritans have said Jeremy Hughes won’t become their next chief executive.

It follows controversy over Hughes management style at the Alzheimer’s Society which a newspaper claimed resulted in paying out £750,000 in non-disclosure agreements.

A whistleblower claimed there was an excessive use of NDAs at the society – a claim the Charity Commission failed to follow up.

Hughes, who resigned from the Alzheimer's Society in September 2019, was set to replace Ruth Sutherland at the suicide prevention charity.

Unite - which represents around 50 staff at the Samaritans - urged the charity not to appoint Hughes because of the allegations.

A spokesperson for Samaritans said: “In light of events over the past week, the board of trustees has decided that it cannot proceed with the appointment of Jeremy Hughes as chief executive, which was due to start in May.

“This decision is not in any way based on the allegations themselves, which Samaritans is not in a position to judge. It will begin a new chief executive recruitment process in due course.”

The Charity Commission admitted failing to investigate the whistleblower's allegations after it was passed an 11-page document in February 2018.

The watchdog's director Helen Earner said: “While this was at a time when the volume of cases coming into us was high, nevertheless we should have followed up on the complaint, and that did not happen."

The Charity Commission is now looking into the complaint.