Greenfields School
Amount Lent
£11m
Current Value
Unknown
Estimated Loss
Under review
An £11 million loan from the council to a private school, raising questions about why a local authority was lending public money to a private educational institution at favourable rates.
Details
Woking Borough Council lent £11 million to Greenfields School, a private educational establishment. The loan was made using funds borrowed by the council from the Public Works Loan Board.
The loan raised fundamental questions about the appropriateness of a local authority lending taxpayer-backed funds to a private school. The purpose and terms of the loan were not subject to the level of scrutiny that such an unusual arrangement warranted.
Combined with a further £6.4 million loan to another private school, the council committed over £17 million of borrowed public funds to private educational institutions.
The current status of the loan and the likelihood of full repayment remain under review as part of the broader assessment of the council's financial position.
Key Dates
2011
£11 million loan to Greenfields School agreed
2023
Loan status under review as part of S114 process
Related People
Sources
- Commissioners' Publications— Woking Borough Council / Government Commissioners