Camila Batmanghelidjh remembered by Lemn Sissay
I first became aware of Camila Batmanghelidjh through the disrupting influence of Kids Company. It was on the frontline of childcare in London, and everybody will remember the strong, vivacious, articulate woman at its head. There was something about her – how she dressed and the words she spoke – that showed me she wasn’t your average founder of a children’s charity. And then there were the stories that radiated out from her. She had a meeting with the queen, and during that meeting she got a call from a child in a panic, and she took the call, left the meeting and went to that child. Most heads of children’s charities would not have that kind of contact. It made her a threat to the status quo of the sector and I liked that.
We met in 2009 while I was artist-in-residence at the Southbank Centre, and the artistic director Jude Kelly wanted us to meet inspirational people who saw creativity as the heart of their practice. Down the road was Camila at the Kids Company HQ. I remember sitting in her creative office; I got such a warm feeling of welcome and ease from her. She was Iranian and she was British. She was highly educated but wore it lightly, and she was as at ease speaking to a prime minister as to a child who didn’t know how to talk to her. She wore clip-on earrings because when she worked with children who needed care and help, she was aware they might grab her ear, and that they wouldn’t know how to behave when in disturbed states. She profoundly understood the intricacies of trauma and how it manifests itself in children’s behaviour. Having grown up in care myself, this is why I loved her.
Right up until her death, she remained working for and with young, traumatised children and families
We stayed in contact after that. Ours was a physically distant but emotionally close relationship. I met her at her home in West Hampstead, and probably one other time, but we exchanged a lot of emails, and at Christmas she would send me presents (colourful cups, saucers and bowls; a Christmas jumper; a winter coat). She once wrote me an email that said: “Do you know how much I love you?” in the subject line, and the answer in the first line of her email was: “To Persia and back, one million times.” She got through my walls. She would say to me, “I see you. I see you.” So when I was less likely to visit her home – for years I didn’t feel up to visiting people in their homes – she wouldn’t disappear. She would stay in touch regardless.
Our relationship strengthened in the middle of the furore around Kids Company. It was closed down in 2015 on the back of false accusations of financial mismanagement and sexual impropriety within the organisation, which were investigated by the police and they found no evidence of wrongdoing. The official receiver’s case against the charity dragged on for years but was ultimately thrown out by a high court after a 10-week hearing in 2021. She was vindicated, but the shunning continued.
I was in touch with her throughout, mainly via email, and made public announcements in support of her. She was constantly aware of having to make it clear that she had the legal proof against what was being said, but nobody would listen.
I didn’t believe the accusations against her. A journalist claimed that she’d used Kids Company money to get a big house with a swimming pool, which was nonsense. She lived in a small two-bedroom apartment. There were dark forces working against her, and Camila was full to bursting with light.
She was the embodiment of integrity in children’s social care. I think a lot of people were jealous of her, because when she was being castigated by the powers that be, people standing up for her publicly were noticeable by their absence. I don’t think there’s a better example of a person in the charity sector being so wrongly accused. The judge not only exonerated her and all of the trustees, but also commended them for their brilliant work and their dedication to children.
It’s really important to know that, throughout it all and right up until her death, she remained working for and with young, traumatised children and families that needed her help – she didn’t stop. That’s how awesome she is. They didn’t kill her spirit.
There are some extraordinary people in this world, and Camila Batmanghelidjh was one of them.
