Elite school Clayfield College in shock debt crisis

AN EMBATTLED Brisbane elite school body stands accused of mismanaging one school to the point of debt, while using another as a cash cow.

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NOTE: The Press Council has partially upheld a complaint by Presbyterian and Methodist Schools Association. Read the full adjudication here.

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ONE of Brisbane’s top elite schools, Clayfield College, lost 100 students in a year and is on the brink of debt because of financial mismanagement, an independent analysis has concluded.

And the body that runs the prestigious college, the under-fire Presbyterian and Methodist Schools Association, has been accused of using sister school Somerville House as a cash cow.

Beyond PMSA, with 4500 supporters, has held a third town hall meeting where a forensic analysis by finance and corporate governance specialist Tony Moore delivered a breakdown of the finances of the organisation with an $80 million-a-year turnover, 5000 students and 1000 employed staff.

Mr Moore’s analysis claimed the PMSA faced a hit of up to $7 million over the botched handling of the elite schools scandal that has engulfed four of the state’s top private colleges.

The report states PMSA had been “mismanaging finances for years”, including a breach notice on a bank loan agreement at Clayfield College in 2015.

In response, PMSA chairman Greg Adsett last night conceded the financial fallout of the ongoing scandal was “significant”.

But he refuted any suggestion of financial bungling and slammed the independent financial audit as part of ongoing “deplorable” and “mischievous” attacks on the church-appointed body.

Clayfield College has been ‘mismanaged’ to the point of debt, a report says.

The PMSA governs Somerville House, Clayfield College, Brisbane Boys’ College and Sunshine Coast Grammar School.

It faces a 2000-strong petition by outraged parents and alumni demanding it be dismantled over failures of corporate governance.

This follows the alleged cover-up of a top-level data ­security breach, including private details of wealthy benefactors such as Governor-General Paul de Jersey, lewd texts, the dismissal of Somerville House principal Flo Kearney, and an exodus of staff and students.

Mr Moore predicted a $6 million to $7 million impact on the PMSA as a result of the current fiasco “which – if student losses materialise – could trigger teacher redundancies”.

Yet the PMSA put on more staff members, despite the substantial loss of revenue from tuition fees which started at $20,000 a year, Mr Moore said.

He said Somerville House could also lose numerous students and suffer greatly from the loss of tuition fees.

Mr Moore said he handed his financial report to the moderators the Uniting Church and Presbyterian Church two months ago but no action was made.

Mr Moore predicted a $6 million to $7 million impact on the PMSA as a result of the current fiasco “which – if student losses materialise – could trigger teacher redundancies”.

Meanwhile, sister school Somerville House has been used as a ‘cash cow’.

Yet the PMSA put on more staff members, despite the substantial loss of revenue from tuition fees which started at $20,000 a year, Mr Moore said.

He said Somerville House could also lose numerous students and suffer greatly from the loss of tuition fees.

Mr Moore said he handed his financial report to the moderators the Uniting Church and Presbyterian Church two months ago but no action was made.

Uniting Church Elder Everald Compton told the town hall meeting that the PMSA was unlikely to be terminated, but some changes could be made.

He said the Presbyterian Church had “implacable opposition” to removing the PMSA, while the Uniting Church agreed matters must be resolved.

Mr Compton promised parents he would do everything in his power to “work out a formula where the four schools will be democratically led”.

“We need a democratically elected board which has maximum power,” he said.

“This would help to resolve it with a minimum of bloodletting.”

Mr Compton also added there was a possibility of some change within the PMSA, as members believed school councils should have more responsibility at the schools.

“We owe it to the children of the school not to live under all this tension.”

Beyond PMSA passed a motion to obtain legal advice to get Queensland Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath to step in and help dismantle the PMSA.

Mr Adsett said they rejected the “many incorrect statements” that Mr Moore had concluded from his analysis.

“The PMSA is a strong, financially robust organisation and operates as one consolidated financial organisation for the benefit of all of our four schools,’’ he said.

“Financial statements are prepared by highly qualified professional business managers at each school and audited by KPMG in accordance with the Australian Accounting Standards.

“The financial impact on the PMSA is significant only because of these continued attacks on the PMSA and our schools which are damaging our schools’ reputations and impacting our staff and students.

“The PMSA deplores the mischievous behaviour of Beyond PMSA members and others, and the misleading and false information they continue to circulate to our community.”