Former major general jailed for fraud exits university post

A former major general has left his role as chief operating officer of a UK university after being jailed for fraud.

Nick Welch, who joined Arts University Bournemouth (AUB) as chief operating officer in 2019, was imprisoned for 21 months at Bulford Military Court. He had been convicted of conning the British army out of £48,000 in private school fees the previous day.

“Following a guilty verdict in court proceedings against Nick Welch that predate his employment at Arts University Bournemouth, the university can confirm that Mr Welch has left his role as AUB chief operating officer with immediate effect,” a spokesman said.

The former assistant chief of the general staff was found to have misused a continuity of education allowance by falsely claiming that he and his wife spent most of their time at his London address while sending his children to schools in the south-west of England. The court ruled that the couple had actually spent most of their time at their home in Dorset.

Welch, who retired from the army in the year before he took up the AUB role, was the most senior officer to face a court martial since 1815.

Judge Advocate General Alan Large ordered Welch to pay back the fraudulently claimed cash, and also sentenced to him to retrospective dismissal from the military, which means he loses his former rank.

chris.havergal@timeshighereducation.com