Humana UK (closed)
Clothes recyclers Planet Aid Ltd, Green World Recycling Ltd, Gaia and DAPP UK
CICD College, Hull
Red House School and Winestead Hall School (closed)
HUMANA UK
Chain of charity shops, used clothes boxes and volunteering, run by the Teachers Group, closed down by the Charity Commission in 1997 following an investigation. The Commission found ‘serious financial impropriety’ and evidence of forms of money laundering. Although the name ‘Humana People-to-People’ is no longer used in the UK, other Teachers Group enterprises in Britain (see below) are formally linked to the Humana People-to-People organisation internationally.
Why the charity Commission closed down Humana UK
DAPP UK
Used clothes enterprise run by the Teachers Group since 2007, with two shops, clothes collection boxes, door-to-door and street collections. DAPP often uses foreign students who have been promised ‘training’ as charity or aid workers to collect and sort clothes. It works closely with all the other Humana offshoots in Britain, Planet Aid, Green World, Gaia, and CICD. Despite its association with Humana People-to-People, DAPP UK has been accepted as a registered charity in the UK.
PLANET AID LTD
Large old-clothes enterprise based in Corby, Northamptonshire, collecting used clothes in roadside boxes and door-to-door ‘for charity’. Planet Aid UK is run by the Teachers Group and is not, in fact, a registered charity, but a company registered at Companies House. It was set up in 2007, apparently to replace Humana UK. Planet Aid is run by a Teachers Group member, is part of the Humana People-to-People international organisation, and shares many working arrangements with DAPP, Green World, Gaia and CICD.
GREEN WORLD RECYCLING
Another Teachers Group old-clothes enterprise, this time based in the West Midlands, with roadside boxes and door-to-door collections. Green World emphasises ‘environmental projects’ in its promotional material; we seriously doubt if any of these actually exist as described. Like its sister enterprise Planet Aid, it is not a charity, but a registered company and is run by a Teachers Group member – in this case the husband of the person who runs Planet Aid. Also like Planet Aid, it is a part of the Humana People-to-People international organisation, and works closely with DAPP, Gaia and CICD.
GAIA MOVEMENT
Gaia Movement does not appear to have a formal company or charity structure in the UK, but is a name used by the Teachers Group for used clothes collections, door-to-door collections, and street fundraising. It is closely associated with Green World Recycling (its logo appears on Green World Boxes) and the other Teachers Group enterprises, DAPP UK and Planet Aid. Volunteers attracted to the ‘Gaia Programme’ abroad often find themselves working long hours for no pay collecting used clothes, and have been housed in run-down accommodation in Newcastle, Manchester or Birmingham.
KT’s story about Gaia in Birmingham and CICD (March 2009)
Linda’s story (Newcastle, UK) (December 2007)
CICD COLLEGE
College for International Co-operation and Development
This ‘college’ at Patrington near Hull has existed since 1997 and is one of about 17 Teachers Group ‘training colleges’ worldwide, the only one so far in Britain. Students attracted on the Internet come mainly from abroad, with large numbers at the present time from Japan and Brazil, expecting to train as a ‘volunteer in Africa’. There is a hefty advance payment required, and students are routinely sent out ‘fundraising’ (begging on the streets) and working to collect used clothes. The quality of education is poor and many students leave before finishing the ‘course’. CICD has accreditation to educate foreign students, but we will be challenging this.
WINESTEAD HALL SCHOOL
THE SMALL SCHOOL AT RED HOUSE
These two ‘small schools’, at Patrington in Humberside and in Norfolk, were run as privately-operated ‘special schools’ with boarding accommodation for socially and emotionally disadvantaged teenagers, until they were closed down by the Charity Commission and local authorities in 1997. The schools charged large amounts of money to local councils for providing this ‘service’, but on inspection authorities found the provision of service was inadequate, facilities poor, staff were not properly trained and the schools were not adequately maintained or financed. Large amounts of money had almost certainly been transferred over the years into Teachers Group offshore accounts in Jersey. Winestead Hall School has since become the ‘College for International Co-operation and Development’ (CICD).
Statement by Steen Thomson, head teacher of Winestead Hall School (1998)
NEWS
19th November, 2009
The ‘House’ in Tennyson Road, Small Heath, used by DAPP / Planet Aid volunteers and exposed by the BBC in early 2009 has closed down. It has reportedly been replaced by a similar property near Birmingham airport. Details?
Last revised 5th May 2010
