The Charity Commission has opened a compliance case into a charity that supports child victims of crime, amid reports that its former chief executive has accused its chair of sexist bullying and forcing her out of office.

The regulator said it was engaging with trustees at Embrace Child Victims of Crime, which was set up in 1993 by police officers to support child victims of crime and their families.

The commission said it received a serious incident report earlier this year, making it aware of the suspension of its former chief executive, Anne Campbell, who was later dismissed in May after 12 years in post. 

According to reports in The Times newspaper, Campbell has alleged that she was forced out by the charity’s chair, Simon Bailey, and has lodged an employment tribunal claim accusing him of sexist bullying. 

Bailey “strongly refutes” all allegations against him, the charity said.

Campbell alleged that she was forced out of her role by Bailey because he wanted to take the charity in a new direction with the backing of “an obscenely wealthy friend”, reports said.

She has launched an employment tribunal claim, in which she accused Bailey of sexist bullying, saying Bailey believed he could “coerce or cajole” her into following his instructions, according to The Times. 

But a spokesperson for the charity told Third Sector that Campbell’s dismissal came after a review of Embrace’s infrastructure, policies, governance and finances – carried out to explore a potential extension of its services – identified “numerous concerns”.

“The review led to the identification of numerous concerns, which resulted in the dismissal of the chief executive, following an independent investigation. An appeal was made against this, and the decision to dismiss was upheld, again as the result of an independent investigation.”

The spokesperson said the charity was unable to comment on the details of the employment tribunal while the process was underway, but said: “We can confirm that Simon Bailey strongly refutes the allegations made against him. 

“Embrace continues to provide crucial support services to child victims of crime, thanks to the many donors and supporters that help fund its work.”

A spokesperson for the Charity Commission said: “We have a compliance case open into Embrace Child Victims of Crime and are currently engaging with its trustees. 

“We can confirm that, in a serious incident report earlier in the year, the charity made us aware of the suspension of its former chief executive.”

Campbell has been contacted for comment.