ASSURANCES GIVEN to the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) in the wake of the NHS Tayside nurses’ uniform purchase may never be known, writes Marjory Inglis, health reporter.

Last night NHS Tayside had not formally responded to a request to make public letters which passed between representatives of NHS Tayside Endowment Fund and the charity watchdog.

However, it appears decisions on how to spend charity cash will no longer be taken by just two people meeting in private—one of the assurances sought in the wake of an investigation. The charity regulator got a “positive” response on that and other issues.

Last year The Courier highlighted a decision to spend up to £400,000 of hospital charity cash to buy replacement nurses’ uniforms, a basic item normally purchased from mainstream health budgets.

This newspaper has campaigned for more openness and transparency around the decisions taken by the charity fund trustees who continue to meet in private.

OSCR visited NHS Tayside Endowment Fund officials within hours of The Courier publishing a call for a top level investigation into the uniforms decision.

The investigation has now been completed but limited information released by both sides presents a confusing picture.

Last month NHS Tayside issued a press release stating that the charity regulator was “entirely satisfied that the decision to make the purchase was correctly taken.”

A letter sent to Perthshire man Bill Stewart earlier this week by OSCR’s senior investigations officer Tom Thorburn confirmed that his inquiries found the trustees were acting within their powers when they decided to spend charity cash on replacement uniforms.

However, Mr Thorburn sought assurances that it was a one-off event and basic equipment should be provided by the health service and not by “benevolent donors.”

The decision was taken by just two trustees meeting in private and Mr Thorburn also sought assurance that items of business involving major expenditure of charity funds would normally be decided by a substantial number of trustees.

The contents of Mr Stewart’s letter caused “surprise and concern” to NHS Tayside chief executive Professor Tony Wells, who said he would be seeking “urgent clarification.”

When The Courier contacted OSCR again yesterday to formally ask for full copies of the letters which passed between the parties. a spokesman for OSCR said the regulator would not be releasing them and it would be up to NHS.

As a result The Courier has not yet seen the letters.

An OSCR spokesperson said, “OSCR can confirm that we wrote to the NHS Tayside Endowment Fund stating that the decision to buy replacement uniforms was within the powers of the charity trustees.

“However, we also stated in our letter that we had concerns about the process by which the decision was made, and sought assurances from the charity that they would address our concerns in relation to this.

“We have since received a positive response from the charity on these issues and have therefore closed the inquiry.”