Smethwick school fraud trial told of in-class cheque signing
A teacher was asked to sign up to 10 cheques at a time in the middle of a lesson by the school head or her secretary, both alleged to have defrauded the school of hundreds of thousands of pounds, a court heard.
Jennifer Rogman, then assistant headteacher, was also brought out of class to help clear a cupboard in the main hall of personal items – including clothing, framed pictures and an ornamental stag's head.
Headteacher Michelle Hollingsworth, 55, and secretary Deborah Jones, 57, are alleged to have systematically syphoned cash from Annie Lennard Primary in Smethwick for around five years by using the school’s cheques and bogus purchase orders.
The order to clear out the cupboard, given with some urgency, came in the autumn of 2015, just weeks before the pair were suspended, the jury heard.
Mrs Rogman, now deputy head, said she had never seen the items used for school purposes.
They included binbags full of used and new clothing, some with labels still attached.
She and three other teachers were told to dump everything in a skip on the school car park but were allowed, after appealing to Hollingsworth, to take some items to a charity shop near the school, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.
They were told that the goods belonged to a staff member who had recently retired. Hollingsworth then ordered them to clear paperwork from a set of filing cabinets.
On one occasion, she saw Hollingsworth putting folders in the boot of her car and was told she was taking them home before deciding whether they needed to be disposed of or not.
Asked how she felt about the clear-out, Mrs Rogman said: "It made me feel uncomfortable because we were throwing a lot of things away."
Cheque book
As a signatory to school cheques, the deputy head said a cheque book would sometimes be brought into the classroom while she was teaching, which gave her no opportunity to check what she was signing for.
"I was asked to sign more than one cheque at a time – sometimes 10 cheques, one after another – while in class with the children," Mrs Rogman told the jury.
She was also present when Hollingsworth authorised requests by staff for educational material but would then tell her assistant not to process the request, the court heard.
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Hollingsworth was increasingly absent from school, initially starting late or leaving early, citing medical or family issues, but latterly both she and Jones were away for whole days, allegedly on training sessions, said Mrs Rogman.
Then in September 2015, staff were told there was no money left for basic classroom needs and either the children would have to go without or staff buy items out of their own pocket.
"We were told that the authority had done us over – there was no money left in the budget and we were in dire straits," added Mr Rogman.
Others, including tradesmen and family members, are alleged to have been involved in the racket.
Jones of Barrs Road, Cradley Heath admits conspiring with the headteacher to defraud Sandwell Council and the school but denies all alleged frauds involving other people.
Hollingsworth, of Hatherton Park, Cannock, denies the conspiracy and all the other charges brought against her. She and Jones left the school in 2015. The case continues.
