The Charity Commission has opened a statutory inquiry into The House of St Barnabas in Soho (Charity number 207242-1).
The House of St Barnabas was set up in 1862 to provide temporary relief and support to people experiencing homelessness and it entered liquidation in January 2024. Linked to this charity was The House of St Barnabas in Soho . As a result of the liquidation a new corporate trustee, The Explorers Club (Soho), was appointed to the charity, in place of The House of St Barnabas.
The Explorers Club (Soho) then entered into a licence in early 2026 with the private company The Explorers Club (London) Ltd (‘TEC(London)’) allowing TEC(London) to use the charity’s property located at 1 Greek Street, to run a private members club and collect members’ fees. The licence fee would generate income for the charity and allow it to continue operating.
Last month, the regulator received a serious incident report informing it that the charity has been a victim of fraud as it disputes a loan that has been secured against its property at 1 Greek Street. The loan appears not to have been repaid and, as a result, the creditor is taking steps to recover its loan. The Commission has concerns that the charity’s main asset – the 1 Greek Street property – is at serious risk.
The regulator is launching this inquiry to establish the facts leading up to this point, to examine the financial arrangements and decision-making involving the charity.