A former or current employee of a Rotherham charity has told a jury she accepted a total of £16,000 from a client who had received compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority, but denies she acted dishonestly by abusing her position.
Background and charges
The case is being heard at Sheffield Crown Court. The defendant, Kathryn Kelwick, aged 55 and of Eilam Road, Rotherham, faces one count of fraud by abuse of position. She has pleaded not guilty to that charge. Kelwick worked as the vulnerable adults manager at Swinton Lock Activity Centre, a registered charity that provides learning, educational, support and social activities for children, young people and adults.
What the prosecution says
Prosecutors say Kelwick accepted money from a sexual abuse survivor who had been awarded compensation. The complainant told the court she was told it would be “part of the deal” to split any Criminal Injuries awards with Kelwick. The compensation awards were recorded in court as £22,000 in September 2021 and £11,000 in May 2022. The complainant subsequently transferred sums of money to Kelwick totalling £16,000.
| Date | Event | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Sept 2021 | Compensation award | £22,000 |
| May 2022 | Compensation award | £11,000 |
| After awards | Transfers to defendant | £11,000 and £5,000 (total £16,000) |
Defendant's account
Giving evidence, Kelwick accepted that it was inappropriate to accept the cash and said, in effect, that she should have returned it. She told the court:
"Looking back on it now that's exactly what I should've done. Obviously thinking about it, it was morally wrong."
She conceded she knew Swinton Lock staff were required to declare gifts and that cash should not be accepted, but said she did not report the transfers to her manager because she feared it would amount to a breach of her contract and cost her her job. The court also heard defence counsel Dermot Hughes ask jurors to consider whether the sums were an outright gift given in poor judgement, rather than dishonest conduct.
Local implications and questions for the charity sector
The case raises immediate questions for local service users and supporters about safeguarding, governance and the handling of gifts within charities that support vulnerable adults. Key issues highlighted at court include:
- Whether any organisational systems were in place and followed to prevent staff accepting cash from clients;
- How declarations and reporting of gifts were monitored by Swinton Lock's management;
- The potential impact on trust between service users and support staff when financial transactions occur informally.
Swinton Lock Activity Centre is a registered charity; the trial will examine whether Kelwick abused her position within that role. The jury will be asked to decide whether she acted dishonestly or whether the transfers constituted a misguided gift accepted in poor judgement.
Proceedings at Sheffield Crown Court continue. The outcome will be of interest locally to those using or supporting charities in Rotherham, and to anyone involved in safeguarding vulnerable adults in the voluntary sector.
