Tertiary institute closed after audit results

A tertiary education provider closed after a damning audit raised concerns about tens of thousands of dollars in funding claims, new documents show.

In March, The College of Future Learning New Zealand (FutureCOL), which was based in Hawke’s Bay, went into voluntary liquidation. Chief executive Bharat Guha said the closure was due to a shortage of full-fee-paying international students.

The private institute, which offered courses in computing, cooking and hospitality, underwent an audit by the Tertiary Education Commission, which provided its funding, in late 2016.

The results, delivered to FutureCOL in February last year, have been released to The Dominion Post under the Official Information Act.

The audit raised serious concerns about several issues, including the institute incorrectly claiming a total of $65,548.12 in funding from the commission, which it was forced to pay back.

In one instance, funding was claimed for a student in 2015 who only attended a total of five days, four of which were in the first week, with no achievements.

Concerns were also raised about the quality of record-keeping and the integrity of historical student data reported by the institute in 2014, 2015 and 2016.

The commission also raised concerns about there being ‘‘no evidence’’ of domestic status for two students in 2016, and no evidence of domestic status for another student who attended between 2014 and 2015.

Former FutureCOL staff member Kevin Moloney said Guha’s explanation of the closure being the result of a student shortage, with no mention of the audit, did not add up.

There was a lack of planning and mismanagement of finances at the institute, he said.

The commission’s monitoring and crown ownership manager, Dean Winter, said the audit identified a ‘‘number of issues’’ at FutureCOL that it was required to address.

‘‘This included addressing the concerns about proof of domestic status, coding of student funding and course completions.’’

The commission previously provided $1.2 million in funding to FutureCOL in 2017, $1.68m in 2016 and $1.63m in 2015. No funding was granted to FutureCOL in 2018.

The decision to discontinue funding was based on information obtained through the audit, as well as information in FutureCOL’s funding proposal, Winter said.

Guha, born in Singapore, was the school’s chief executive from April 2016. He took over from Liddy Trotter, who had the role from 2000.

It is understood Guha, who is also a chartered accountant, now works as the group chief financial officer at holding company Malvern International. He did not respond to requests for comment.