Former school business manager convicted of fraud ordered to repay money

A former school business manager who stole hundreds of thousands of pounds was ordered to repay £380,000 back to the school when she appeared at a confiscation hearing at Kingston Crown Court on Tuesday (14 January).

Debra Poole, 63, was sentenced to six and a half years’ imprisonment after she was found guilty of one count of fraud by abuse of position and three counts of fraud by false representation following a trial at Kingston Crown Court in March 2023.

Poole was the School Business Manager for Hinchley Wood Primary School in Esher and was in charge of the school bank accounts at the time the offences were committed.

During her trial, the court heard how she abused her position as signatory of the wraparound care club’s bank account between 14 October 2011 and 10 October 2018 by transferring funds, writing out cheques to herself and then cashing the cheques. This amounted to a total of over £490K over the seven-year period.

In February 2009, Poole, who also oversaw the documentation used for changes to staff pay, submitted a Variation in Pay Form to Surrey County Council payroll team, in which she increased her pay scale from level E to F.

Two years later, in November 2011, Poole submitted further paperwork increasing her pay scale from level SP9 to SP10.

She was also in charge of managing the invoices and finances for Woody’s, the school’s breakfast and after school clubs, and claimed that between 1 June 2016 and 10 September 2018 she was working 30 hours a week as their administrator.

The confiscation hearing was told that the total benefit from Poole’s criminality was £535,770.82. An uplift to cover inflation was applied to this figure, giving a total benefit figure of £708,267.02.

The court agreed that the available amount Poole had access to, and therefore should pay, was £380,884.28, including the sale of her house.

If she does not pay the money within three months, Poole will either have to apply to extend the deadline or serve a default prison sentence of three years and eight months. If the default sentenced is invoked, Poole would still need to pay the confiscation order.

Detective Inspector Charley Bryant from the Economic Crime Unit, said: “The outcome following the confiscation hearing today demonstrates that we will go after people who have benefited from the proceeds of crime and ensure that they do not continue to do so.

“Debra Poole stole hundreds of thousands of pounds from Hinchley Wood Primary School while she was employed there as business manager. This gross breach of trust and her elaborate deception spanning some nine years funded an extravagant lifestyle and afforded her luxury holidays and cars which she would not otherwise have been able to afford.

“I have no doubt that this would have continued had the school not worked out what was going on and reported the matter to police, resulting in a lengthy and complex investigation which included examining bank accounts and hundreds of documents to prove that she had defrauded the school.

“The fact that we have pursued this to a confiscation hearing should also be a deterrent to anyone else thinking of committing similar offences that it is simply not worth the risk – not only could you end up in prison, you could also have everything taken away from you as well.”