Sarah Fergusonâs charity has announced it is shutting down for the âforeseeable futureâ, a move that comes just days after explosive new files reignited scrutiny of the former Duchess of Yorkâs long-criticised friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.
Sarahâs Trust confirmed it would âregretfullyâ close after months of internal discussion, insisting the decision had been planned long before the latest tranche of documents emerged. However, the timing has raised eyebrows, with the announcement landing only days after newly released emails suggested Ferguson had taken her daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, to visit Epstein in July 2009âless than a week after he was released from a Florida jail for child sex crimes.
A spokesman for the charity said Sarah Ferguson and the board of trustees had agreed the organisation would close âwith regretâ, adding that the process had been âin train for some monthsâ. He stressed that the trust remained proud of its record, having partnered with more than 60 charities across 20 countries, delivered over 150,000 aid parcels during the Covid pandemic, supported medical relief efforts in Ukraine, and funded education for more than 200 children in Ghana.
The announcement follows damaging revelations from millions of documents released by the US Justice Department. Among them were emails showing Epstein telling his then partner Ghislaine Maxwell that âferg and the two girlsâ had visited him, alongside messages in which Ferguson herself asked Epstein for his address and suggested they might have lunch together.
Further correspondence revealed Epstein later complained that Ferguson failed to defend him publicly after his conviction, while other emails showed her apologising to him for criticising him in public. The disclosures have reportedly left Beatrice and Eugenie âdeeply distressedâ, with sources saying they were aghast and embarrassed by the tone of their motherâs messages.
The fallout has been building for months. Last September, Ferguson was dropped by several UK charities, including Teenage Cancer Trust and the British Heart Foundation. She later resigned from a US-based Youth Impact Council, a move welcomed by the family of alleged sex-trafficking victim Virginia Giuffre, who urged American organisations to follow Britainâs lead in cutting ties.
Ferguson has previously described her association with Epstein as a âgigantic error of judgmentâ and is said to be in a fragile state, telling friends that the ongoing scandal has been ânot good for my mental healthâ. She and her ex-husband Prince Andrew have also been increasingly isolated from senior royals, including King Charles and Prince William, further straining already delicate family relationships.
