There is a certain fascination in seeing how people's behaviour changes once temptation is put in their way, This re-construction of an ex nun's rise from rags to riches illegally demonstrates how people of all creeds and backgrounds can succumb to temptation once the safeguards have been removed. Throughout the piece, we are left wondering firstly why grant maintained schools could be allowed to operate without suitable controls in place to protect the public purse, and secondly why no one blew the whistle on a regime that was clearly putting its own interests before those of the school.
Fraud is often uncovered when an aggrieved colleague either sees blatant injustices being carried out, or are themselves excluded from rich pickings being enjoyed by others. The re-construction gave many examples of where the whistle could be blown, but it took a change of government and a return to local authority administration, and its attendant financial control procedures, for the fraud to be exposed.
I thought the documentary was well presented, with the characters and the whole situation thoroughly believable. The "Last Supper" scene was particularly effective in conveying the duplicity of those within the "inner sanctum" who will always run with the hare and the hounds.
For those unsure as to why it is necessary to put on these documentaries when the plot is well known, they should see it as an exercise in human behaviour; how people change given money, power and opportunity, and how quickly they change sides when the balloon goes up.
