Almost $365,000 misappropriated by one person at Dunedin school
A Dunedin high school has revealed close to $365,000 was misappropriated by one person over five years.
Logan Park High School emailed parents on Thursday "in the interests of transparency" after an external accountant first discovered the missing funds last year.
It happened between 2019 and 2024.
The school's board of trustees said it was an isolated incident involving one individual and a thorough review had been conducted.
"It's important to note that this matter has now been fully resolved, and we want to share the outcome with our whānau to reassure you that, moving forward, our systems and processes are robust," the board said.
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The misappropriated funds had been full recovered along with legal and accounting costs, but the board said it had to wait until after the investigation and audit were completed before disclosing what happened to ensure due process was followed.
The audit process had recently been signed off and the total amount of $364,884 (GST inclusive) was published in the 2023 full Annual Report.
The board acknowledged the news might come as a surprise, but said the Office of the Auditor-General has been consulted and the financial risk to the school as a result of this issue had been eliminated.
"After uncovering the issue, we identified necessary improvements and changes to our processes, which were implemented immediately in 2024 to strengthen our internal policies and ensure that this won't happen again," the board said.
"This includes third-party professional support."
The board thanked its staff for their willingness to assist, saying their cooperation had been invaluable in helping it to resolve the matter and strengthen the school's financial safeguards.
"We have fully cooperated with the audit process throughout and remain committed to upholding the highest standards of integrity in our school's financial management," the board said.
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"The school has remained in a stable and secure financial position throughout this period."
The Ministry of Education's Acting Hautū Te Tai Runga, Andrea Williams, said the ministry was aware of the matter and would be working with the school to better understand the processes they followed.
Police would not confirm if they were involved.
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The missing funds were recovered, along with legal and accounting costs. Photo: RNZ / Tess Brunton A Dunedin high school didn't go to the police after almost $365,000 was misappropriated by a staff member more than five years. An external accountant first discovered Logan Park High School was missing funds last year. The money was taken between 2019-24. The school's board of trustees said it sought legal and accounting advice, and was told it was best treated as an employment matter, as it was one individual acting in isolation. "Our priority was to recover the funds in full and as quickly as possible, while ensuring the matter was handled appropriately," the board said. The missing funds were subsequently fully recovered, along with legal and accounting costs, and a review was conducted. The board said the person was no longer employed by the school and they had made changes to ensure this wouldn't happen again. The high school emailed parents on Thursday to tell them what had happened, acknowledging that might come as a surprise, but the financial risk had been eliminated. The board declined to comment further on the personal details, saying it was an employment matter. The Ministry of Education said it was aware of the matter and would work with the school to better understand the processes they followed. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
