A charity that falsely claimed it had secured £2 million of funding after being told to stop has been cleared of wrongdoing after an investigation.

Surrey Canal Sports Foundation, which has been at the centre of the New Bermondsey and Millwall CPO controversy, was revealed to be using the false funding claim as recently as January this year.

MORE: Report published on New Bermondsey CPO and Surrey Canal Sports Foundation investigation

The revelation was discovered by The Guardian newspaper after a letter was sent to SCSF by Sport England in September 2014.

Lewisham Mayor Steve Bullock resigned from his position as a trustee in February, a Lewisham spokeswoman confirmed.

FROM FEBRUARY 2017: Lewisham mayor resigns as trustee of sports charity at heart of New Bermondsey controversy

But a case report published by the Charity Commission on Friday (August 4) found no evidence for allegations levied against the charity that included money-laundering, tax avoidance and links with a developer and local officials.

It was contacted by a media organisation that asked about an "inaccurate claim [by the charity] of a £2 million funding agreement with Sport England".

MORE: Surrey Canal Sports Foundation used £2 million false funding claim three years after they were told to stop

It said: “Following an in-depth analysis of accounts and records we found no evidence of money-laundering or tax avoidance.

“We also reviewed the charity’s accounts against the charity accounting standards and found them to be compliant.”

The report added: “We did not identify any concerns with the way the charity was managing conflicts of interest.

“The commission received differing accounts as to the nature of the financial support from Sport England and the charity.

“However, it accepts that the charity’s statements about Sport England’s support were made in good faith and did not have the intention to mislead.”

When assessing the low income and high expenditure of the charity and if it had failed to achieve its stated aims, it said: “The trustees explained that, although the charity was funded through debt, the loans are interest-free and will be repaid solely at the discretion of the trustees when the charity has surplus funds.

“It has been operating this since it was founded using funds loaned to the charity from the developer Renewal.”

The conclusion states that SCSF had addressed regulatory concerns and demonstrated it was acting independently which led to the case being closed in March 2017.

A spokesperson said: "The SCSF cooperated fully and willingly with the Charity Commission as the trustees understand that charities can attract considerable public scrutiny where they are involved with decisions that are seen to be controversial.

"The SCSF welcomes the conclusions of the Charity Commission and looks forward to continuing its mission to encourage local communities across Lewisham and Southwark to take part in sports and remains fully committed to seeing through the delivery of Energize at New Bermondsey."