According to the National Audit Office, plans for the Durand Education Trust have been approved by the Department of Education Trust in Sussex without actually analysing its risk. It is reported that ministers approved for the £17mn free state boarding school in England without studying its effect.
Department of Education has however warned that the fund will be given only if a business case is submitted. As per NAO, £330,000 has already been granted apart from £20,000 which was given earlier. The project is aimed at building a boarding school in West Sussex for children aged 13 on the site where a public school stood before. Parents of children studying in this school need not pay anything.
Although this scheme had major support there were concerns regarding the financial viability. The fund of £22mn is expected to come from DfE and further £5mn from the Durand Education Trust. According to Amyas Morse, the Comptroller and Auditor General, proper planning and risk management techniques need to be undertaken in order to deliver the project effectively. The DfE has said that a complete business case will be submitted once all the issues related to planning are resolved. The money will be allotted for the free school project only after this , it added.
