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Inquiry urged over four-star spending at primary school
EXCLUSIVE: Teachers have demanded an urgent independent inquiry into the way thousands of pounds were spent by a Yorkshire primary school on foreign travel, hotels, clothes and entertainment.
The Yorkshire Post can reveal a special investigation by council auditors into the accounts at Darfield Upperwood Primary School, in Barnsley, raised serious questions about the way it was using public money.
Trips to Australia and Austria, stays in expensive hotels and the purchase of clothes for staff were among the items investigated as well as the employment of members of the headteacher's family.
The auditors' findings can only be made public after they were released to the Yorkshire Post under the Freedom of Information Act.
The conclusion of the auditors' final report said: "Many of the issues investigated during this audit have highlighted a pattern of expenditure which is not consistent with the spending patterns of other Barnsley MBC schools.
"This pattern of expenditure has personally been sanctioned by the headteacher and he, personally, has benefited."
The school's headteacher at the time of the investigation, David Smith, is still in the post.
Barnsley Council has said that, while a senior officer had expressed the authority's "extreme displeasure" to Mr Smith, who had expressed regret at the time, his motives were honourable and the authority decided the school's interests were best served by the matter ending there.
Auditors who inspected the books at Darfield Upperwood found Mr Smith had wrongly received consultancy fees and had approved his own overtime payments.
His wife was paid to work for the school without the potential conflict of interest being registered while his son worked as a classroom assistant on an IT project.
The school organised conferences at expensive hotels rather than at more modest council-owned facilities and organised a two-night stay at a four-star hotel in Lincolnshire for a four-hour training session.
Smart clothes were bought for the school's administration staff as well as suits for the headteacher and deputy head. School cash was also used to fund trips to pubs and restaurants.
Pete Bevis, Barnsley secretary for the National Union of Teachers, said: "The NUT is very concerned to be informed of the disclosures made about the way in which large amounts of public money provided for the education of pupils at Darfield Upperwood Primary school has been spent. These are very serious and quite extraordinary matters.
"Staff, parents and governors at any school have a right to expect the highest standards of financial accountability from those who are entrusted with school budgets.
"Parents in particular will be justifiably concerned to hear of these matters, especially when many will have assisted in raising additional amounts to fund school projects or trips.
"In view of the seriousness of these matters, the NUT is calling for a full and independent inquiry into all aspects of this case to see what lessons can be learned."
Paul Desgranges, South Yorkshire executive member of the NASUWT union, said: "The audit investigation of this particular school appears to have revealed a lack of rigour in accounting for and recording the decisions made.
"Significant amounts of taxpayers' money appear to have been spent on some questionable projects. If public trust is to be maintained it is essential that school budgets and expenditure are subject to rigorous protocols and scrutiny."
The results of the council investigation were presented to Edna Sutton, the authority's director of children's services, who later met Mr Smith to discuss the findings.
Barnsley Council assistant deputy director Steven Mair said: "She met with Mr Smith and took him very seriously to task on the issues identified by the audit.
"He was extremely contrite in that meeting and he demonstrated the fact that it wouldn't happen again. He was challenged and made aware that it may be the case that he could have used this money in a different way."
Mr Mair said the authority was happy that Mr Smith's motivation had been "totally genuine" and his intentions were "totally honourable".
He added: "It is a good school so our director took a view in the round. Is it better for the children that the matter is fully discussed with him and a rounded view taken? The finance was not ignored by any means. We had him in, we expressed our extreme displeasure but we took a rounded view. This is not setting a precedent."
When asked to comment on the documents released to the Yorkshire Post, Mr Smith referred all questions to Barnsley Council.
Background: How the cash was spent
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Saturday 11 February 2012
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