DEPHER Community Plumbing and Heating Support CIC, formerly known as Depher, (Disabled and Elderly Plumbing and Heating Emergency Repair) is a
Community Interest Company
A community interest company (CIC, colloquially pronounced "kick") is a type of company introduced by the United Kingdom government in 2005 under the Companies (Audit, Investigations and Community Enterprise) Act 2004, designed for social ente ...
based in
Burnley, Lancashire, England, that gives free plumbing and heating services to vulnerable people.
It relies on
crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by crow ...
, donations, and income from private jobs to fund its work.
History
DEPHER was founded in March 2017 by James Ward Anderson. Anderson was inspired to help people after he visited an elderly man whose boiler had been tampered with in an attempt to make him pay for a replacement.
During the
COVID-19 pandemic, DEPHER gave vulnerable people free food, gas, and electricity. This stopped in 2023 due to DEPHER being unable to support an increase in demand.
In June 2023, Anderson received a
British Citizen Award at the
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parli ...
for services to volunteering and charitable giving. The award was later rescinded.
In November 2023 DEPHER began taking donations of furniture, clothing, and shoes for its fundraising shop in Burnley.
DEPHER rebranded to “Community Plumbing and Heating Support” in January 2024. Then rebranding in February 2024 to DEPHER Community Plumbing and Heating Support CIC.
Donations
In August 2023,
Samantha Giles donated two photos from the set of
Emmerdale to raise funds for Depher.
In October 2023, Depher returned a donation from Tristan Tate following a social media backlash due to ongoing
criminal investigations
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...
.
Hugh Grant and Anna Eberstein have donated a total of £75k to Depher.
In April 2024, DEPHER suspended all fundraising via platforms such as
GoFundMe and Crowdfunder.
BBC investigation and accusations of impropriety
On 16 May 2024, the BBC published an article detailing an investigation into DEPHER and Anderson. This investigation reported instances of manipulation in social media posts, lack of consent from those being featured, and safety concerns regarding DEPHER’s operations from former employees.
A 31-minute report, titled ''Scams & Scandals: Britain’s Hero Plumber Exposed,'' was subsequently uploaded to
BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer (stylised as iPLAYER or BBC iPLAYER) is a video on demand service from the BBC. The service is available on a wide range of devices, including mobile phones and tablets, personal computers and smart televisions. iPlayer services del ...
.
Use of social media
Anderson has attracted considerable attention and controversy via his use of both personal and DEPHER social media accounts, including posting photos of customers without permission, and cases where photos and stories shared have been subsequently found to have been faked or altered.
In December 2023, an investigation by
The Independent revealed that Anderson shared a picture of a
golliwog in 2016 to his social media account and that he believes in the "
All Lives Matter" sentiment.
2022 house purchase
In February 2024, Anderson revealed he purchased a house to rent out to his brother-in-law and father-in-law at a cost of £73,125. However, Anderson maintains that the house was purchased via “profits from paid work”.
Investigations by regulatory bodies
In March 2024, Anderson uploaded a video to a new DEPHER CPH CIC Fundraising
Facebook page detailing work ongoing with the CIC Regulator and the
Information Commissioner’s Office
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is a non-departmental public body which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). It is the independe ...
(ICO) regarding safeguarding processes.
In May 2024, an article published by Lancashire Live confirmed ongoing investigations into DEPHER by the
Fundraising Regulator, the CIC Regulator and the ICO as a result of accusations of wrongdoing.
These accusations include “fixing” of a tombola in the Fundraising Shop,
GDPR and personal data breaches of DEPHER clients, as well as concerns surrounding DEPHER’s finances.
References
{{Reflist
British companies established in 2017
Companies based in Burnley
Plumbing organizations
Community interest companies