AN Audit Commission inquiry has raised questions about the 'super-teacher' Dame jean Else, and her running of Whalley Range High School for Girls. We take a look at the report - and Dame Jean has her say...

THE Audit Commission found that payments to two caretakers at the school, totalling £12,000, were "unwise and not properly justified."

In one case, in 2000, a caretaker was paid an honorarium of £8,900 (the equivalent of six months salary) after resigning from the position at the school, which was not formally reported in the minutes of the governing body. The same caretaker was paid £1,300 in the form of a loan, of which just £300 was paid back. A second caretaker, who resigned in 2001, was paid £2,000, in lieu of notice, which the school said followed advice from the LEA.

IN response, Dame Jean told the M.E.N.: "These payments were absolutely in line with many other payments made by other schools and by the city council.

"The largest payment was a normal severance payment that acknowledged all the hard work he had done for the school when it had moved to one site and had been refurbished. We agreed we should not have made the loan, but it was on the understanding that it would be paid back out of his severance payment."


THE Audit Commission found that the £4,000 spent by the school to celebrate Dame Jean's award of a damehood and the completion of an internal audit by the council to be "excessive."

The school hosted two celebration events to mark Dame Jean's inclusion in the New Year's Honours' List in February and March 2001 at a cost of £3,000. And the school spent a further £700 on catering at an event to celebrate "passing" the council's internal audit.

According to the report, the school said the events were funded out of unofficial funds, rather than public money. But the district auditor said there was "a clear lack of understanding of the distinction between unofficial and unofficial funds at the school and how these should be managed."

In response, Dame Jean told the M.E.N. that the celebrations - one of which was organised as a surprise for her - had been an important celebration for the school that had been attended by senior officials from the LEA and the DfES - including a recorded message from the then Secretary of State for Education Estelle Morris - and leading city councillors.

"Now I wish it had never happened, but I was thrilled when my colleagues at school and nationally wanted to recognise what I had done," said Dame Jean. "It was rare that a headteacher got a knighthood; I was the first in the north west. Lots of schools have parties following Ofsted and other celebrations and I think they are important for the morale of staff so people recognise how important they are. I don't know the cost of the first one - but how can that be levelled at me when I didn't organise it?

"We had previously had a celebration for a good Ofsted, and after the Audit Commission we wanted to do the same for our support staff."

Dame Jean denies that the costs involved were "excessive" and she stresses that the school is clear about the use of finances - stressing that the school's income has rocketed in the past 10 years.


THE report concludes that Dame Jean did not follow proper procedures when appointing a "personal friend" to conduct consultancy work at the school between February 2000 and autumn 2001.

It says that the governing body should have been made aware of the full extent of the work, which accumulated a £13,200 fee, and that the governing body should have been made aware of the personal relationship between the two.

In response, Dame Jean told the M.E.N. that the criticism related to the use of former Trafford headteacher Jan Atkinson OBE - a national expert in the field of multi-cultural education and a member of the team that headed the inquiry into the Oldham riots - to help the school prepare for an Ofsted inspection.

Dame Jean describes Ms Atkinson - who had appointed Dame Jean as her deputy in 1990 - as a "colleague" and as the "best person for the job." And she stresses that Ms Atkinson was paid on an hourly-rate for the work completed. Dame Jean said: "I informed the governors that she was being employed. As far as I am concerned the governors trusted me to make the decisions for the school that have made it the success that it is."


THE report reveals that since 1999 Dame Jean's salary has been supplemented by a significant amount of external work. It questions the decision to allow Dame Jean to keep all of the income from external work on top of her salary. And it points to the lack of written reports presented to governors' meetings relating to a decision in 2001 to award Dame Jean an honorarium equivalent to 20 per cent of her salary - without consideration of her income from external sources and the impact absences could have on the running of the school.

In response, Dame Jean admitted that her salary had, at times, been boosted because she had been requested to carry out additional work, for organisations that included the government and the local education authority.

In 2000 the governing body, she said, had agreed she could keep external earnings. And she says her roles outside school had a positive impact within it.

"Any impact that that work had on school was in keeping up to date and bringing fresh ideas back to the school, which has kept the school at the cutting edge," said Dame Jean, who says the LEA were so pleased with her performance at Whalley Range that just weeks before they suspended her they approached her to take over the running of a second school simultaneously.


THE district auditor accuses Dame Jean of "a serious and continuing lapse of judgement" in the employment of her sister, Maureen Rochford.

He points to defects in documentation relating to application forms, interview notes, reasons for appointments and authorisation process and says Dame Jean should not have taken any part. He points to an overlap of responsibilities between Ms Rochford and director of governance Stewart Scott and recommends a review of their roles and remuneration.

But in response, Dame Jean denies that there was any overlap between the two roles, with Mr Scott securing additional funding for the school and Ms Rochford being responsible for financial management within the school.

She says Ms Rochford was first employed as a clerical assistant, by herself and former chair of governors Claire Debenham 10 years ago.

When the finance manager was on long-term sick Ms Rochford "stepped into the breach" to take on her role temporarily because she had previous finance experience.

During that time the school moved from having a deficit to a healthy surplus and the financial running of the school became computerised. So when the position became permanently available Ms Rochford took over.

Dame Jean says that later, in line with many schools reassessing the role of the school `bursar' figure, Ms Rochford was moved onto the senior management team.

"I think the proof of the pudding is in the eating," said Dame Jean. "We are in a very healthy financial position.

"Like anybody there are things I would do differently, but everything I have done was in good faith and for the right reasons."

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