Captain Tom's daughter shares holiday snap amid backlash over building spa complex 'in hero's name'
6 July 2023, 13:02 | Updated: 8 July 2023, 12:49
Captain Tom's daughter has shared a picture from what appears to be a family holiday despite facing an ongoing backlash over building a spa complex in her father's name.
Hannah Ingram-Moore, 52, and her husband Colin have been accused of using Captain Tom's name to build the spa and pool complex at her £1.2million Bedfordshire home.
But planners ordered that the building, originally dubbed the Captain Tom Foundation Building, be torn down after the C-shaped complex was rejected retrospective planning permission.
They have since confirmed that an appeal was launched against the demolition of the building.
"An enforcement notice requiring the demolition of the now unauthorised building was issued and this is now subject to an appeal to the Planning Inspectorate," Central Bedfordshire Council said.
Read more: Neighbours of Captain Tom's daughter want to 'take a sledgehammer' to spa complex built in his name
Despite the ongoing backlash, Ms Ingram-Moore came across upbeat as she shared a family photo to social media, which appeared to show them all on holiday.
The two-way image from BeReal showed the family of four grinning opposite an exotic landscape.
Ms Ingram-Moore reshared the photo with a love heart emoji.
Locals have objected to the family's spa building and branded it "ugly" as well as claiming that it is "out of character" for the area.
A petition to get the larger building demolished accumulated around 100 signatures, with 20 lodging formal objections with Central Bedfordshire Council.
One of the complaints stated: "I am shocked at the complete lack of consultation by the applicant with the neighbours on the boundary of the development whose residential amenity has all been severely harmed."
A second local resident added: "The building is ugly, far too large for the site, and really out of character and scale for its location.
"How the Council could have approved this building and for it then to be built so much bigger than the approved plans is terrible."
Captain Sir Tom Moore raised nearly £39 million for NHS Charities Together by walking laps of his garden during the pandemic.
He was later knighted but died after contracting coronavirus in early 2021.
The Captain Tom Foundation - separate from the money he raised for the NHS - is being investigated by the Charity Commission, which is looking into "concerns about the charity's management, including about the charity's independence from the family of the late Captain Sir Tom Moore and businesses connected to them".
A statement on the Captain Tom Foundation website revealed that they had stopped taking donations while the Charity Commission carried out a probe.
"At this moment in time, the sole focus of The Captain Tom Foundation is to ensure that it cooperates fully with the on-going Statutory Inquiry by the Charity Commission," they said.
"As a result, The Captain Tom Foundation is not presently actively seeking any funding from donors.
"Accordingly, we have also taken the decision to close all payment channels whilst the Statutory Inquiry remains open.
"Once the findings of the Statutory Inquiry have been communicated, The Captain Tom Foundation will be in a better position to make a decision in relation to its future, but for now, our main priority is to assist the Charity Commission with its enquiry.
"In the meantime, on behalf of the trustees of The Captain Tom Foundation, we wish to extend a warm thank-you to all our supporters who have enabled us to help charities that were close to Captain Sir Tom’s heart."