Headteacher uses official card to buy personal items
by
political editor Paul Francis
A headteacher suspected of
using the school’s credit card to buy personal items worth up to
£3,000 escaped prosecution and disciplinary action.
The potential offence was among
12 suspected frauds committed by county council staff in the last
six months.
It was uncovered by council
auditors as part of their work responding to allegations of
so-called irregularities.
But the headteacher, who was
also suspected of submitting false expenses claims and paying a
family member for voluntary work, was not prosecuted and left the
job before KCC could take any formal action.
The identity of the former head
is not known and KCC said it would not identify them because there
was no proven case.
The case has now been referred
to the Teaching Agency, which regulates the profession.
A report presented to county
councillors setting out details of the case said there was evidence
to support the allegations and the matter was referred to the
police.
But they could not pursue the
matter and during the inquiry, the headteacher left the
post.
In a
statement, KCC said: "We are unable to disclose the name of the
individual because there was no proven criminal case and therefore
the information is not in the public domain.
"If the professional body
pursues a case any subsequent hearings may be held in
public."
In other cases, pension payments
totalling £6,758 were made to members of Kent’s pension scheme who
had died, but KCC was unable to recover the money even though it
had been withdrawn because the banks involved refused to
co-operate.
Council auditors had no legal
powers to force them to do so.
Neeta Major, interim head of
audit at Kent County Council said: ""Kent County Council is
committed to tackling fraud.
"The council maintains a zero
tolerance approach towards all fraud and corruption to ensure that
public money is safeguarded.
"We proactively promote a strong
anti-fraud culture and actively seek to deter, prevent and detect
all types of fraud, working with other agencies when
appropriate."
19/04/12
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