When I dug into Soul61 in a previous post I spotted some odd aspects to the setup of the organisation. I went back and took a closer look. I've worked for charities before, but what I found surprised me.
Soul Survivor have established a structure of charities. That may seem weird, but it's how they're able to accept donations. And it makes sense, because they have a purpose which isn't making profit.
At the time of writing, the related parts are:
- Soul61 - a charitable company
- Soul Survivor Watford - a charitable incorporated organisation
- Soul Survivor - a charitable company
- Soul Survivor International - a charitable company
I've worked in several charities. In the charity world we have this role called a trustee. If you're a charity in the UK you must have trustees. According to the regulator, the Charity Commission, trustees:
have independent control over, and legal responsibility for, a charity’s management and administration.
(Source: The Essential Trustee)
If you work for charities you'll hear about trustees. And you'll notice that trustees sometimes make CEOs nervous - they provide a major part of their accountability. They're important, and for that reason they're publicly named.
I've previous blogged about the Mike Pilavachi interns, the small group each year who he invites to shadow him. They travel with him, and Soul Survivor pay their costs. We learn about this programme from the Soul61 annual reports - it's part of the activity for that charity.
It seems clear that Mike Pilavachi is in charge of this programme of work. But who is he accountable to?
Well, the reports of Soul61 list the Director of the charity as Andy Croft. Croft is in charge of the day-to-day management of the charity. So Pilavachi is accountable to Croft.
And who is Andy Croft accountable to? The trustees. As it would be for any UK charity, large or small. Between 2011 (when the charity was established) and March 2023 the trustees of Soul61 have been:
- Alison Martin
- Andy Croft (His dual role seems unusual, but can happen where small charities are concerned)
- David Saunderson
- Elizabeth Biddulph (until October 2019)
- Rebekah Ricketts (since June 2021)
and...
- Mike Pilavachi
Oh.
That's right. Mike Pilavachi is accountable to Andy Croft, who is accountable to Mike Pilavachi.
Hmmm.
How about the other trustees?
Well, Alison (or Ali) Martin has been a staff member of Soul Survivor Watford since 2005. In that period Pilavachi has been Senior Pastor, Co-Pastor and now Associate Pastor. Martin is currently described as Assistant Pastor. So, how does Ali-Martin-the-trustee hold someone who is also her manager to account?
David Saunderson is the CEO of Cantab Asset Management. I can't see any other Soul Survivor connections with him.
Elizabeth (or Liz) Biddulph was Chief Executive Officer of Soul Survivor until February 2014 alongside Pilavachi. How does Liz-the-trustee hold her co-leader accountable in 2012 and 2013? Particularly when he's also a fellow Soul61 trustee.
I can't find much information about Rebekah Ricketts. Companies House lists her as an accountant. I can't see any other Soul Survivor connections.
And, there's more complexity to unpack...
If you peruse the Soul61 annual reports you'll see that a portion of the income comes from Soul Survivor - £64k in 2012, £52k in 2016, etc . How does Croft hold Pilavachi accountable? Mike Pilavachi is joint leader of a major donor to the charity he manages.
This seems like a conflict of interest.
For a part of the 2012-2023 period Mike Pilavachi is Senior Pastor of Soul Survivor Watford. That would make him Andy Croft's boss. How does Croft hold Mike Pilavachi accountable for his interns?
This seems like a conflict of interest.
During this time Soul Survivor Watford are donating money to Soul 61 - for example, £46k in 2012. As Senior Pastor, I imagine Pilavachi has power to enable or block those gifts. How does Croft hold him accountable?
This seems like a conflict of interest.
You may recall that participants on the The Leadership Course spend two days each week receiving training. Apparently, the Mike Pilavachi interns also attend when their schedule permits. Where do you find space for 20-40 learners each week? According to the 2017 annual filing:
Soul61 uses warehouse space belonging to Soul Survivor Watford, which is normally given free of charge
In the early years of Soul61, how did Croft hold Pilavachi accountable, when Pilavachi provided the space needed to run a major part of the work for free?
This seems like a conflict of interest.
Andy Croft is married to a Soul Survivor worship leader: Beth Croft. In 2014 she released an album via Survivor records, a record label run by Integrity Music named after Soul Survivor. This label seemed to major on artists connected with Soul Survivor.
There's no indication that Pilavachi makes any money from Survivor Records, but it's likely he has sway in the artists involved because of the brand association from the names. In addition he is also a trustee of Word and Worship Trust, a charity where Integrity Music are the controlling party, which is based in their Brighton offices.1
How does Croft hold Pilavachi accountable if the latter played a part in securing his wife's record deal?
This seems like a conflict of interest.
Let’s turn back to trustee Ali Martin. She wrote a couple of books, both published in 2012:
- Get it Across Loud and Clear: A Speaker's Practical Guide to Preparation and Delivery
- Heart to Heart: Eight Ways to Understand and Heal your Vital Connection to God
Each of these books have a foreword from Mike Pilavachi, and one mentions him on the front cover as follows:
Includes interviews with top Christian speakers such as J. John, Mike Pilavachi and Mary Pytches
As a trustee, how does Ali Martin hold Pilavachi accountable when he's providing support for her book sales?2
This seems like a conflict of interest
Speaking of books, in 2008 Croft and Pilavachi had a book published together. I imagine it was Mike Pilavachi's involvement that made that happen, as he'd written 11 previous books. So Croft is likely indebted to Pilavachi for his career as an author. This partnership continued with two further books in 2016 and 2018.
This seems like a conflict of interest.
When you look at all these factors... wow. I can't quite believe the confused lines of accountability. I'm left asking the question - who was in charge here? And I just don't know.
Updates and corrections
These changes have been made after the post was published on 7th May 2023.
1. Sentence about Word and Worship Trust added on 9th May 2023
2. Details of Ali Martin's books added on 10th May 2023
