News
Elaine McCallig
Feb 10, 2022
The Independent
Captain Sir Tom Moore’s daughter claims a fundraising campaign in honour of her late father had “a reach of 12.8 billion” - almost double the population of Earth.
Centenarian Captain Tom made headlines across the globe in 2020 when he raised £33.3 million for the NHS by doing 100 laps around his Bedfordshire garden. He died aged 100 last February.
The Second World War veteran’s daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore states that since his passing, she has continued to fundraise in his honour, including the creation of the ‘Caption Tom 100’ campaign.
On her LinkedIn profile, she said the campaign raised £1.3 million in three days, and involved over 1,000 charities and had a reach of 12.8 billion.
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Reach is a metric that counts the number of people who have seen a piece of content and is often used as a way to measure a campaign’s performance.
Given the global population is an estimated 7.7 billion according to the UN, a reach of 12.8 billion is the equivalent to everyone on earth viewing the content an average of almost 1.67 times.
This metric in relation to the global population was first highlighted by Twitter user Andy Williams.
Indy100 has reached out to The Captain Tom Foundation to ask for clarification on how the figure of 12.8 billion was totted up.
The Captain Tom Foundation has come under scrutiny in recent days after accounts revealed the charity spent more on “management costs” than grants in its first year.
Financial statements for the foundation show that over £162,000 was spent on management costs, while £160,000 was actually given to charities – despite taking in more than £1million in donations.
Accounts also showed that £54,039 has been paid to two companies run by Ingram-Moore, and her husband, Colin.
The Charity Commission has announced that they are now reviewing the charity’s accounts.
In a statement published by Sky, chair of trustees at The Captain Tom Foundation Stephen Jones said: "Captain Sir Tom Moore was a beacon of hope around the world. Our mission as The Captain Tom Foundation is to continue his legacy of kindness and determination to create positive social change.
"As a young charity, we have been working closely with The Charity Commission since we launched, and we welcome their input following the publication of our recent audited annual accounts."
Indy100 has contacted The Captain Tom Foundation for comment.
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