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Free school principal found guilty of fraud
EB News: 01/08/2016 - 14:15
The founder of Bradford Kings Science Academy and two members of staff have been found guilty of defrauding the government out of £150,000.
The school’s founder and principal Sajid Raza, his sister Shabana Hussain, and staff member Daud Khan, payed money received from the Department of Education to set up the school into their own bank accounts.
The three were found guilty at Leeds Crown Court and will be sentenced in September.
Peter Mann from the Crown Prosecution Service said Raza obtained the money by creating false invoices, submitting fraudulent expense claims and paying himself an inflated salary.
"The defendants treated public money as their own, and when challenged, fabricated documents to cover their tracks," he said.
Nearly two thirds of Initial Teacher Training providers believe that teachers are not currently prepared to meet the government’s ambition to raise the complexity threshold for SEND pupils entering mainstream schools.
England’s councils are warning of a "ticking time bomb" in the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system, with new data showing deficits that could bankrupt local authorities within three years.
The regulations have been set following a second consultation and detailed collaborative working with organisations and people across deaf and hearing communities.
The Education Committee has published a letter to the Secretary of State for Education asking for more detail about the Department for Education’s work on developing its SEND reforms.