Primary head on £374,000 a year suspended amid expenses storm
BRITAIN’S highest-paid primary school boss has been suspended as documents emerged showing he billed the taxpayer for a series of expenses.
Sir Craig Tunstall, who earns more than double the salary of the Prime Minister, has been put under investigation by governors.
The ‘super-head’ is paid £374,000 in his role as chief executive of the Gipsy Hill Federation of eight primaries in Lambeth, South London.
Yesterday, documents obtained by the Daily Mail show he billed the public for hundreds of pounds in taxi rides and other expenses last year.
His cab costs came to almost £600 even though he lives just a short walk away from Tube and train stations and within ten miles of the schools he oversees.
There is no suggestion that he was suspended over the expenses claims, which are legal, and it is also understood he denies any wrongdoing.
However, yesterday critics questioned why he felt the need to bill the hard-pressed taxpayer when he earned so much in the first place. John O’Connell, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: ‘ Very few will begrudge paying a headteacher well if it is matched by good performance in schools.
‘But questions need to be asked as to whether it is right that so much of taxpayers’ money goes towards travel and expenses, on top of a very handsome salary.’
Chris Keates, of the teachers’ union NASUWT, said: ‘Headteachers have highly responsible and important jobs and their salary should reflect this.
‘However, the stories of six-figure salaries, bonus and benefit packages for increasing numbers of headteachers and super-heads at a time when teachers have faced deep cuts to their pay and are facing increasing barriers to pay progression, are deeply concerning.’
The data was obtained via the Freedom of Information Act before the suspension and there is no suggestion that the two are related. It reveals Sir Craig claimed £1,023 in 2016, including £593 on taxis. One £13 fare was for Sir Craig to travel home to deal with what was recorded as a ‘domestic emergency’.
The documents also show that he was in the US when one of his
‘Questions need to be asked’
schools was inspected by Ofsted. He later claimed £175.50 for phone calls from overseas during the inspectors’ visit.
He was reimbursed £40 for buying plants for a ‘leadership suite and welcome area’ as well as more than £200 for a ‘twilight meeting’.
Sir Craig, 45, oversees eight primaries as well as Gipsy Hill School, a new secondary opening in September 2017, and Kingswood Chil- dren’s Centre. With a salary of £330,000 and pension contributions of £ 44,000, he has been named as the best-paid schools chief in the country. Theresa May’s pay package is £150,000.
Sir Craig was awarded a knighthood in 2014 for his services to education and he is also designated as a National Leader of Education. He has turned around a number of schools, earning him a reputation as a ‘super-head’.
Sir Craig lives in a £950,000 townhouse in fashionable Hoxton, East London and declined to comment last night when approached by the Daily Mail.
Lambeth Council, which runs the Gipsy Hill Federation, said the head had been suspended while an investigation was carried out.
A spokesman said pay packages and expenses policies were decided by school governors. A statement to parents from schools also confirmed the suspension.