Education boss welcomes jailing of Dudley 'super-head' who pocketed taxpayers' cash

David Bishop-Rowe undertook lucrative work advising other headteachers when he should have been behind his desk at The Sutton School and Specialist College, in Scotts Green Close, Holly Hall.

He was one of six specially selected “super-heads” across the country to form part of a taskforce designed to improve school leadership nationally, resulting in him working in partnership with many bodies including Wolverhampton University and Walsall Council.

The cash for the work, which took place during school hours, should have been paid to the school in Scotts Green Close to compensate for its missing head.

But Bishop-Rowe instead ordered the invoices - which came to just over £23,000 - to be paid into the bank account of his limited company Education Development Consultancy Ltd. Meanwhile he continued to be paid his full annual salary of over £91,000, despite not being at school for up to three days-a-week while carrying out the work between 2011 and 2013.

He also convinced school governors to agree to two bonus salary uplift payments totalling nearly £50,000 during the period in question, in which he bought a Spanish villa and a £4,000 Yamaha Clavinova piano for his personal use.

Bishop-Rowe, of The Crescent, Cradley Heath, was jailed for more than two years on Wednesday after being found guilty of two counts of fraud and one count of false representation, following a jury trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court in October. He had denied the charges, but in a unanimous verdict a jury took 24 minutes to find him guilty on all counts.

Dudley Council will be launching proceedings with a view to reclaiming all of the money back through the Proceeds of Crime Act.

The borough's cabinet member for children’s services Councillor Ruth Buttery said: “David Bishop-Rowe was a highly thought of ‘super-head’ with a long and distinguished career in education. He occupied a position of trust and respect within the school and local community.

“It is truly disappointing to see that he used this position of responsibility and influence for his own gain, rather than for the benefit of the school he was leading. I therefore thank the court, judge and jurors for this decision.

“I would like to thank the council team and governors of Sutton School for their relentless pursuit of the truth over so many years.

“The school is now being expertly led by Mr Ian Curnow and holds a ‘good’ rating with Ofsted. The resilience of the governors, staff and students is to be praised as the students thrive in a safe, welcoming and enriching environment which meets their learning needs and prepares them for adulthood.”

Bishop-Rowe was banned from teaching indefinitely by the National College for Teaching and Leadership after an independent panel hearing held in his absence five years ago. He had admitted a string of breaches.

In 2006 he was named runner-up in the education category at the Dudley Civic Awards.

Sutton School has about 180 pupils, aged 11-16, with autism and additional learning needs.