Kids Company charity founder Camila Batmanghelidjh dies aged 61, family say
Ms Batmanghelidjh died on Monday after a lengthy illness, her family confirmed.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Tributes have been paid to the ādedicatedā social justice campaigner Camila Batmanghelidjh who has died aged 61.
Ms Batmanghelidjh, an Iranian-born social justice campaigner, founded Kids Company in 1996Ā to support vulnerable children and young people in London and Bristol.
In a statement on Tuesday, Ms Batmanghelidjhās family said she died peacefully in her sleep on Monday after a period of āfailing healthā, describing her as an āendless source of inspirationā who ādedicated her life to advocating for Britainās most vulnerable childrenā.
Her charity attracted several celebrity backers including former prime minister David Cameron, Coldplay, artist Damien Hirst and comedian Michael McIntyre ā and Ms Batmanghelidjh was made a CBE for her work.
But it was wound up in 2015 after police launched an investigation, which was dropped seven months later, into unfounded allegations of abuse and exploitation, following the broadcast of a BBC Newsnight report.
In 2021, a bid to ban Ms Batmanghelidjh and seven ex-trustees from being company directors was rejected by a High Court judge, who commended her āenormous dedicationā to young people.
In 2022, the Charity Commission later published a report concluding that the charity had been mismanaged, claiming it operated a āhigh-risk business modelā.
Later that year, Ms Batmanghelidjh won a High Court bid to pursue a judicial review of the report.
Ms Batmanghelidjhās family said she died āpeacefully in her sleepā on New Yearās Day after celebrating her birthday with her loved ones.
The statement said: āWorking alongside her devoted colleagues and dedicated volunteers, Camila changed the lives of tens of thousands of children and young people in London, Bristol and Liverpool otherwise neglected by a failing child protection system.
āShe showed these children that they were worthy of love and support.
āFor all those around her, and especially for her family, she was an endless source of inspiration, a fountain of wit, and a kaleidoscope of colour.
āCamilaās family hopes that her memory will inspire others to consider how they might protect and uplift vulnerable children.ā
In her 2021 High Court judgment, Mrs Justice Falk described Ms Batmanghelidjh and seven Kids Company trustees as āhighly impressive and dedicated individuals who selflessly gave enormous amounts of their time to what was clearly a highly challenging trusteeshipā.
Speaking after the hearing, Ms Batmanghelidj said she hoped the ruling would be the āfirst step in refuting the many lies that have been told and banishing the false mythsā.
She described the Charity Commissionās report the following year as a ācorrupted attemptā to ājustify its mistaken decision to conduct an investigation in the first placeā, later winning a bid to challenge the watchdogās findings at court.
But, in an obituary on her website,Ā her family said Ms Batmanghelidjās health declined as she was engaged in ālegal battlesā, explaining that a condition in her childhood had left her immunocompromised.
It said that, since the pandemic, she had left her flat in North London on āonly a few occasionsā to receive treatment for recurring infection.
The obituary concluded: āUntil her death, she continued to work with vulnerable children, who called her or visited her to discuss their traumas, their insecurities, and their challenges.
āCamila wanted to honour these children with the care and protection they deserved.ā