The agency at the centre of the Presidents Club scandal has pulled down its website which showed its workers in skimpy dresses and schoolgirls outfits at previous events.
Artista provided 130 ‘tall, thin, and pretty’ hostesses for the now-notorious night at London’s Dorchester Hotel, with some reporting being grabbed and harassed by the gathered businessmen.
The Berkshire-based firm’s website showed its workers apparently ‘on location’ at events in white hotpants, St Triniansesque school uniforms and 60s-style short skirts.
But this afternoon, the site which had offered information on ‘models’, ‘clients’ and ‘services’ were removed and replaced simply with an email and phone number.
The agency who supplied ‘hostesses’ to the now-notorious Presidents Club event in London last week has pulled down its website, which showed its workers at previous events
The website showed staff ‘on location’ at previous events it had helped to organise
The agency’s founder, Caroline Dandridge, also shared videos of women posing on glitter balls and dancing in their underwear.
The company claimed it previously worked for firms including Bentley Moet Hennessy and the Royal Windsor Horse Show.
Ms Dandridge, had reportedly told one of the hostesses at last week’s event: ‘You just have to put up with the annoying men and if you can do that it’s fine.’
A spokesman for Artista yesterday said it was ‘not aware of any claims of sexual harassment’, but that any such behaviour would be ‘completely unacceptable’.
The hostesses have told how they had to sign legally binding Non Disclosure Agreements on the night.
The document added: ‘Absolutely nothing must be discussed/disclosed before, during or after the event to anyone ever.’
In the wake of the scandal, the government is said to be looking at such agreements with a view to possibly changing the law.
The agency, and its boss Caroline Dandridge (pictured), have come under fire for the instructions apparently given to hostesses before the controversial event last week
Videos shared by Ms Dandridge showed models dancing on stage in underwear
Other videos she shared showed women dancing provocatively on giant disco mirrorballs
Theresa May’s spokesman said the PM was looking at the issue of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in light of the controversy.
The spokesman told a Westminster briefing: ‘Questions have been raised about the operation of NDAs.
‘The Prime Minister will look into the way these NDAs are applied to see if changes are required.Issues have been raised and the PM will look into it.’
David Meller was one of three trustees of the charitable organisation today quit the trust which oversees six schools in London and Hertfordshire.
Mr Meller was the chairman of The Meller Educational Trust, which helps to govern four academies and two technical colleges.
But the trustees today released a statement saying they were ‘appalled’ at the reports of what happended at the event organised by Mr Meller.
More than 100 ‘hostesses’ were brought in to handle businessmen at the event. It not suggested those in this image took part in an impropriety
Presidents Club trustee David Meller has stood down from the educational trust that he ran as Labour launched an investigation in Lord Jonathan Mendelsohn (right), who was at the event
The statement said: ‘We, as trustees, wish to express our sympathy to those women who have been so badly treated. David Meller is taking leave of absence as a trustee with immediate effect. The trustees will continue to support the academies within the trust.’
Meanwhile Labour has reportedly launched an investigation into peer Lord Jonathan Mendelsohn, who attended the event.
A party spokesman said yesterday: ‘As I understand it, he has said he was present as a representative of a charity that benefited from the event, but only for part of the dinner. He wasn’t aware of any of this behaviour and completely condemns it.’
Political campaigner Gina Miller was asked to be Presidents Club girl when she was at university
Campaigner Gina Miller was asked to be hostess at the Presidents Club dinner when she was a single mother studying at university.
Ms Miller was approached and told she could ‘earn a lot more money’ working at the event, but there were, ‘things we had to do’.
She told Sky News: ‘I heard from girls who felt very unsafe, were asked to go up to men’s rooms, and behaviour which was very unaccetable.’
Political campaigner Gina Miller has told how she was approached to work at the event
She thought it sounded strange and so she turned down the work and assumed the secretive club had closed down in the time since.
After the scandal emerged yesterday however, she says more investigation needs to be carried out into similar events.
She said: ‘This is not about fundraising, this is not about consenting adults. These girls, from what what we have been presented with in the investigation, were presented with non-disclosure agreements, very soon after they went in to do this job.
‘You can’t sign away your rights, they and they couldn’t have their phones, could go to the toilet, the whole atmosphere is one in which they felt unsafe, there are so many things in which they felt unsafe.’