Top agricultural college appoints chief after mismanagement row

A NEW chief executive has been appointed at a leading agricultural college after his predecessor resigned amid allegations of mismanagement.

Bill Meredith, inset, has been at Bishop Burton College for more than 30 years and has been its acting chief executive and principal since Jeanette Dawson quit last October.

A Freedom of Information request recently revealed that Mrs Dawson, who was earning between £140,000 and £150,000, had spent more than £21,000 in expenses in just 21 months.

That included £1,484 on pictures and framing, £753 on furniture and homeware and £5,755 on hotels. In November 2016 alone, she racked up more than £2,500 in expenses – including £1,145 on personal items which were “purchased then reimbursed”. The college hired an external company to carry out an investigation, but has not released the report. Mr Meredith, the former deputy principal, and the chair of governors, Judy Richmond, have been approached for interview, but neither were willing to answer questions relating to the former principal. Yesterday, the college said Mr Meredith was appointed after a “robust selection process which saw a number of strong candidates from colleges across the country apply”. In a statement, he said his ambition was to improve the college’s Ofsted rating from “good” to “outstanding”, adding: “I appreciate there are challenges ahead but I do feel I’ve got a really strong team here at Bishop Burton.”

Over the expenses claims, the college has previously said it became aware of “concerns” about the way its hospitality and expenses policies were being operated last October.

Inquiries highlighted a “lack of transparency around the terms upon which entertaining expenses were incurred in the past”, according to the college, and the audit trail of who was entertained and how the college benefited “lacked sufficient clarity”.

College regulations were being updated to provide a “stronger framework for the monitoring and approval procedures for use of college credit cards, the claiming of expenses and introduced (sic) a formal process for authorising entertaining and hospitality events”.