This Government is committed to converting all schools in England to academies run by charitable trusts funded by the state. But how well do these trusts spend taxpayers’ money? Channel 4’s programme, Dispatches, investigates. The programme, to be broadcast on Monday 25 July at 8pm, reveals high salaries and ‘generous expenses’.
This won’t come as a surprise to regular LSN readers. We’ve reported on an academy/further education federation which claimed £1m for non-existent pupils, alleged fraud at a high profile free school, numerous related party transactions (contracts given to companies with links to academy trustees) which former chairman of the Public Accounts Committee Margaret Hodge said were just wrong and should be stopped, complicated structures which increase the perception of wrongdoing and academy trusts, many of them highly praised by former prime minister David Cameron and former education secretary Michael Gove, which were served Financial Notices to Improve.
Dispatches will reveal how taxpayers’ money is being spent in ways that do not necessarily benefit academy pupils but could benefit academy trustees. Essential viewing.
Supporting articles (external sources):
Taxpayers fund large wages and lavish perks of academy school chiefs. Observer, 24 July 2016
Are England’s academies becoming a cash cow for business? Guardian, 12 June 2016
Add new comment