Academy ‘falsely claimed £600k’

AN ACADEMY chain has been accused of claiming £ 600,000 in taxpayers’ money to rebuild schools – then pocketing the cash instead.

The Bright Tribe Trust received public money for building work, lighting upgrades and fire safety improvements that were either not finished or never done, according to an investigation by BBC’s Panorama.

The alleged false claims for Government grants have raised questions about whether the funding of academies is transparent enough.

New trustees were appointed at Bright Tribe two months ago and have commissioned independent investigations into all aspects of the organisation.

The programme, broadcast tonight, reveals how Bright Tribe was given £566,000 to demolish and rebuild unstable walls at Colchester Academy, one of its ten schools. But instead of knocking them down, the trust carried out a cheap repair with metal braces, it is claimed.

An insider told Panorama the job only cost about £60,000, but paperwork suggests that Bright Tribe received the full £566,000 and told the Government the work was completed. It is one of a number of alleged false claims made at this school and at the Whitehaven Academy in Cumbria.

Businessman Michael Dwan, who set up the trust, denied all the allegations and said he had actually made a loss on the jobs. Bright Tribe said swift action would be taken if rules had been breached.