Listen to this story Members can listen to an AI-generated audio version of this article. 1.0x Audio narration uses an AI-generated voice. 0:00 0:00 Become a member to listen to this article Subscribe At least £70,000 of rule-breaking payments were used to bankroll overseas trips for senior staff at a troubled academy trust, government investigators have found. Evidence related to dealings worth more than £400,000 between the Hull Collaborative Academy Trust (HCAT) and “related organisations” was also uncovered during the two-year probe. The 16-school chain – which breached rules on 12 occasions – has been given a notice to improve (NTI) and named and shamed in a separate report outlining the offences. A trust spokesperson stressed the issues related “to historic trust-level systems, processes, and governance arrangements”. “It does not relate to the quality of education, teaching or care provided in our schools, which continue to deliver strong outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people across our communities.” £70k overseas trips The Department for Education launched the 2024 investigation into HCAT, centred on information from 2016 onwards, after receiving whistleblowing allegations. A report published last week noted the MAT could not demonstrate “public funds were used as intended by parliament” and that “spending decisions always represented value for money”. Senior staff were found to have gone on several overseas trips since 2018. These were “wholly or partly funded by a related-party organisation”, which “created unmanaged conflicts of interest”. The organisation was not named in the report. Investigators said it was impossible “to establish a total financial value” due to “incomplete records”. The chain was only “able to provide documentation for £69,170”. This “was not consistent with expected standards of transparency and propriety”. Chief executive’s ‘premium’ flight The DfE did not provide more details about the trips. However, Schools Week exclusively revealed three years ago that Estelle Macdonald, HCAT’s then chief executive, spent more than £1,000 of public cash on “premium economy flights” to an Apple conference in California attended by other trust chiefs. Auditors raised concerns the upgrade in 2022 “could be seen as excessive and unnecessary expenditure”, with other costs incurred “for travel to and from the airport as well as an overnight stay” before departing. A spokesperson said at the time that the visit was part of an “exercise to assess how Apple products could enrich the ICT curriculum”. The trust subsequently launched a review into “policies linked to travel, staff development and training… with a view to ensuring this does not happen again”. The DfE’s investigation report said HCAT “did not refer and seek prior ESFA approval for transactions considered to be novel, contentious or repercussive”. £400,000 ‘missing evidence’ The investigation report found “financial dealings with related organisations, including a teaching school entity and a restorative practice company” discovered “missing evidence of procurement, incomplete records and unclear cost allocations” since 2016. The value of these was just under £405,000, based on the information available. HCAT’s accounts show the trust had longstanding relationships with the Hull Collaborative Teaching School and Hull Centre for Restorative Practice. Macdonald was listed as a director of both before they dissolved in 2024. The trust did not confirm if the payments referenced in the investigation report were made to the school and centre. The DfE also stated that “conflicts were not adequately managed, and procurement records were not retained” when the trust undertook an “IT device procurement which included a £69,120 tender”. Employee files examined Files for seven unnamed trust employees showed the staff “had familial or other close connection[s]” to HCAT. Concerns were “identified around weaknesses in the recruitment process, including transparency and fairness,” in five cases. Meanwhile, officials criticised the trust for not being “even-handed in their relationships with related parties”. They singled out “training” delivered by a “close family member of a senior staff member, who travelled from abroad to the trust, with associated costs met by the trust” as an example. CEO departs In 2023-24, Macdonald was paid a minimum of £240,000. This earned her a place among the country’s best-paid CEOs. But last year, she received a maximum of £170,000. The trust did not respond to questions about this. HCAT confirmed earlier this year that she “left her role… by mutual agreement”. It thanked Macdonald for “her contribution” to the organisation. Macdonald – who held the top post since HCAT formed in 2013 – said then that it was “the right time for a new generation of leadership to continue its evolution and to adapt for the future”. Kevin Matchett, previously the trust’s chief operating officer, has been appointed her interim replacement. Macdonald has been approached for comment this week. ‘Rapid progress’ wanted The investigation report said DfE officials were “working closely with the trust to ensure that the necessary improvements to financial management and oversight have taken place and are fully imbedded in its policies and procedures”. They expected to see “rapid progress”. The NTI added the “extent of issues identified” had left the department without “sufficient assurance of good financial management and governance with the trust”. It acknowledged HCAT had “taken some action to address matters”. Among other things, it had been ordered to conduct a “lessons-learned exercise”, conduct a “full external review of governance” and provide DfE with trust board minutes every month for the duration of the notice. The HCAT spokesperson said many of the actions had already been addressed, with further work continuing in partnership with officials. It had undertaken a significant programme of improvement across governance, finance, operations and organisational systems in recent years. An independent external review was commissioned to examine the findings and governance arrangements. It had also “benefited” from a substantially new board of trustees.