About 100 years ago

A local bloke died and left the proceeds of his estate to the local secondary school.  The fund is still running as a charity and is in the region of £130k.  Our next door neighbour, a rertired civil servant in his 70s, is the head trustee, and the other two trustees include the headmaster.  Recently he approached my wife desperate for her help to do audit their accounts as he couldn't find anyone to do them and the deadline to do them was fast approaching.  He offered her £300, although on seeing the last person to do them received £400, my wife insisted on the same.  It became apparent very quickly that they paid in the region of £50 a year from this fund in student prizes, £1,300 to their stockbrokers (don't need them, you should just buy charitable unit trusts) and £400 to the accountant.   

Absurd as it was on face value that they spent 3% on their students and 97% on professional fees, it transpired that it got much worse.  Five years earlier they used a firm of accountants who charged them over £3k, meaning they were completely ripping the charity off too and making the measly 3% effectively 1%.  MADNESS