Latest news from FE Week

City & Guilds execs to launch legal action after exit

Top City & Guilds executives Kirstie Donnelly and Abid Ismail are preparing legal action after being officially exited from their roles by the awarding body’s new owners, FE Week can reveal.

City & Guilds staff were informed this evening that chief executive Kirstie Donnelly and chief financial officer Abid Ismail, who were placed on leave in January amid an internal investigation, have been exited from the organisation.

In a statement to FE Week, legal representatives for Donnelly and Ismail confirmed their departure from the organisation and said “full litigation” would be taken against the move.

City & Guilds staff were informed by email this evening that Donnelly and Ismail “have left the business” after a “rigorous internal process” supported by external advice.

The email said the decision reflected the board’s commitment to “the highest standards of governance and integrity” and confirmed “their departure was not subject to any financial settlement.”

It also stated that the matter is subject to “ongoing legal proceedings” and no further details will be shared.

The pair were placed on leave in January when an internal investigation, led by PeopleCert’s legal representatives and non-executive board members, was launched to examine information “to fully understand events before and after” it bought the City & Guilds awarding business from the charity City & Guilds of London Institute in October.

Staff were told Andy Moss will continue as interim CEO, supported by Konstantinos Andrikopoulos as acting chief financial officer.

The investigation was launched shortly after City & Guilds’ sale to PeopleCert, which saw the awarding body move into private ownership for the first time in its 150 year history.

Staff were told this evening to respect confidentiality and avoid speculation.

The sale is also subject to a statutory Charity Commission inquiry, which is yet to report.

In a statement this evening, representatives acting for Donnelly and Ismail said: “We can confirm that our clients have both left the business. However, as we will shortly be commencing full litigation against CGL [City & Guilds Limited], on their behalf in respect of this matter, neither we nor they will be making any further comment at this time.”

Colchester college wins Court of Appeal VAT fight

Court of Appeal judges have ruled in favour of Colchester Institute in a landmark VAT dispute with HMRC, paving the way for colleges to reclaim tax on pre-2010 building projects.

The government tax authority has been locked in a dispute with the Essex college since the 2010s over what tax discounts it can claim on a large building project.

Judges in the lower tax courts, the High Court and now the Court of Appeal, the second most senior in England and Wales, have repeatedly ruled in favour of Colchester Institute.

The ruling means Colchester Institute, and an estimated 20 to 30 colleges with similar claims, should now be able to reclaim VAT payments made on capital projects started before 2010 that will be used for teaching a mix of fully-funded and fee-paying students.

However, it has also extended a state of uncertainty, as the colleges – and potentially charities – could permanently lose large VAT discounts for charitable organisations.

An HMRC spokesperson told FE Week: “We note the decision and are carefully considering our next steps.” It has until April 24 to decide whether to apply to appeal to the Supreme Court.

After it first lost the dispute in the Upper Tax Tribunal in 2020, HMRC took the rare step of telling colleges they could effectively ignore the ruling – despite the court decision setting a binding legal precedent – while its lawyers mounted a “test” appeal in the High Court.

Colleges known to have similar claims to Colchester Institute include Portsmouth College, Cornwall College, and Derby College Group.

The disagreement centres on a series of VAT claims Colchester Institute made on a large building project started in 2008, using a rule known as the ‘Lennartz mechanism’.

The Upper Tax Tribunal agreed, ruling that the college’s grant-funded education should be treated as a “business activity” for VAT purposes, rather than a “non-business activity”.

However, this classification change excludes colleges from being able to claim VAT reliefs, which could result in some colleges having to pay millions more in tax.

Reliefs include a zero-VAT rate for new-build construction projects and five per cent tax rates on fuel and power costs.

Colchester Institute’s victory has also been described as a “one-off”, as HMRC withdrew permission for colleges to use the Lennartz mechanism in 2010.

Socrates Socratous, VAT consultancy partner at accountancy firm Buzzacott, told FE Week that if the ruling stands, it could be a “problem” for colleges currently constructing brand new buildings that could lose VAT reliefs.

He said HMRC should issue new guidance for the college and charity sector clarifying what its position is.

Socratous added: “This decision is good for Colchester Institute, but the implication goes beyond just colleges.

“It’s something that might affect the charity sector generally, to its detriment, and I think that’s why HMRC needs to take a step back and think about what they’re going to do.”

Noel Tyler, executive chairman of VATangles, which advises Colchester Institute, said: “There was always, to me anyway, a clear and obvious disconnect between HMRC’s longstanding policy and binding case law with regards to the fundamental question of what is, and what is not, for VAT purposes, a ‘business activity’.

“Indeed, HMRC’s policy on the matter is entirely friendless in law, and yet they persist with it, and not just in respect of FE colleges.

“They have actually been quite aggressive with colleges who have applied the binding law.

“However, the Court of Appeal has had no apparent difficulty in, yet again, rejecting HMRC’s arguments. It will be interesting to see where they go now.”

Colchester Institute said: “The college does not comment on matters where there might be further legal implication.”

Revealed: Prisons with most severe cuts to education hours

Prison education cuts have fallen hardest on jails in Greater Manchester and Merseyside where planned teaching hours have been slashed by 40 per cent.

Data published by the Ministry of Justice this week shows at least 79 individual prisons have seen cuts as high as 58 per cent since the new “overhauled” Prison Education Service (PES) began last October.

Ministers admitted earlier this year that the government expected reductions to education delivery hours of between 20 to 25 per cent due to inflationary pressures affecting prison budgets.

New data shows planned education hours in 93 English jails have dropped by 21 per cent in total since the £1.5 billion contract took effect six months ago.

It means that over 130,000 hours of planned education have been lost in total to the rising costs of education delivery.

The data compared planned education delivery hours in the first six months of the new PES contract with the final six months of the previous Prison Education Framework (PEF) contract.

Prisons in Greater Manchester and Merseyside have experienced the largest drop. On average, the seven prisons in the region saw a 40 per cent reduction in education hours.

The cut is up to 20 times the reduction seen in prisons the north east and 10 times the reduction in London, which saw a decrease of 2 per cent and 4 per cent respectively.

Unhappy campers

The stark regional differences likely stem from the MoJ’s “revised” funding formula to prison budgets, which calculated a “fair” allocation to prisons based on population numbers and regional cost differences.

This meant that 79 prisons saw reductions and 13 received an increase.

North Sea Camp men’s prison in Lincolnshire has seen the biggest change – 58 per cent, or 3,328 hours, of its education time was slashed under PES.

Meanwhile, Coldingley, a small men’s prison in Woking, saw a 49 per cent, or 1,299 hours, boost to education delivery since October (see the full prison list here).

The data showed the planned education hours for 93 prisons across England, representing over 90 per cent of the prison estate.

Eight prisons in the West Midlands were excluded from the dataset as MoJ is still retendering the contract after failing to select a supplier last year due to “exceptionally close scoring” between bidders.

Cuts to education time are ‘madness’

Launched in 2023, the PES promised more focus on English and maths education and employment outcomes in a bid to boost rehabilitation and cut down on reoffending.

After a two-year-long procurement, three existing providers were awarded PES contracts worth up to £1.5 billion.

Prisons were informed of their budgets under the new PES for October 2025 to March 2027 last April. Nearly £148 million was earmarked for core prison education across 94 jails.

Critics warned of “seismic” cuts to core education, which offers prisoners literacy and numeracy courses up to level 2, as well as ICT and English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) courses.

Prisons minister Lord Timpson stressed there were no cuts to the budget, but the cost of delivering education has increased significantly, causing decreases in education delivery hours.

Jon Collins, chief executive of Prisoners’ Education Trust, said: “At a time when the government should be investing in education to reduce reoffending, we have instead seen drastic cuts in the first six months of these new contracts.”

He added: “As we have said before, it is madness to cut prison education just as signs of improvement were beginning to emerge.”

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “This government wants punishment that works to cut crime and we know the vital role education plays in turning offenders lives around alongside training and preparing them for jobs when they leave prison.

“Education is one part of this and we are increasing the range of opportunities available for prisoners with a focus on high quality lessons, daily regimes in a number of jails so prisoners can work for longer, and launching sector-specific training with guaranteed job offers on release.”

Ministers plan new careers service, but current provider plans to bid

A new careers advice support service for schools and colleges will replace the functions of the Careers & Enterprise Company, government has confirmed, but the organisation plans to bid to run its successor.

The CEC has been responsible for supporting colleges with careers advice since 2014, when it was founded by then-education secretary Nicky Morgan, now its chair. It receives annual grant funding of around £30 million.

FE Week revealed last week the government was considering a different funding model, launching a market engagement notice regarding “future support for schools and colleges to deliver careers education, information, advice and guidance”.

At a market engagement event on Tuesday, the Department for Education (DfE) revealed that ministers intended to create a new careers advice service by August 2027.

Officials confirmed that this new service would replace the current functions of the CEC, while building on aspects of the current service.

The new service would be delivered nationally, but the supplier would also be expected to provide grant funding for existing local careers hubs.

The CEC told FE Week it would bid to run the new contract “if and when” it goes to tender.

The notice published last month by the government contained little information, and the DfE did not confirm at the time whether the services potentially up for tender were those currently delivered by the CEC.

It also said that the notice was “not a formal commitment to go to market” and that the specification for the service was not final.

More money via local careers hubs

At the event this week, DfE officials said that the service would include a training offer for careers leaders, the provision of digital tools and a “searchable, high-quality digital resource bank” for schools and colleges.

A successful supplier would also be expected to collect and analyse data to be shared with schools, colleges and careers hubs.

It would also develop partnerships with employers, sector organisations and education providers to strengthen careers guidance and work with the government to provide the service.

And the supplier would also be expected to provide grant funding to local authorities for careers hubs.

This aims to give councils the flexibility to shape how the service is delivered and respond to local priorities.

The DfE said it was “keen to maximise the amount of funding directed to local careers hubs” at the event, but it is not clear exactly how much money will flow through town halls.

The funding would need to be used to allow hubs to support schools and colleges, promote apprenticeships and technical education routes, allow employer engagement and work experience and remove barriers for disadvantaged students and those with SEND.

The arrangements must be based on outcomes-based grant agreements which last for multiple years in line with the overall contract, the DfE said.

CEC plans its bid

This week, the CEC said it “welcomes the supplier engagement process and its aim to attract future investment into England’s careers education system over the next 3-5 years.

“CEC looks forward to bidding to continue in its role as the national service provider, if and when an invitation to tender is confirmed.

“In the meantime, CEC continues to deliver on its commitments as the national body for careers education, within its current grant funding agreement with the Department for Education and stands prepared to continue delivering up to summer 2027.”

While the CEC receives an annual grant, the DfE is proposing the new service would be delivered via a three-year contract, with the option for a two-year extension.

The contract would amount to up to £36 million a year and is estimated to be worth between £90 million and £180 million for a three-to-five-year agreement.

The DfE said that it hoped that by moving to a contractual relationship, it would provide “longer term security of funding and delivery arrangements” for schools, colleges and local government.

The tender is expected to go live between August and October, while the contract award is expected in early 2027.

There would be a six-month mobilisation period with a view to the service being in place for the 2027-28 academic year.

Another engagement event will take place in early June to allow interested parties to give more feedback.

While it expects that there would only be one contract, the DfE said it would be open to partnerships between organisations to deliver the service.

The DfE was contacted for further comment.

Revealed: College repair allocations rise to £307m

Colleges have been handed an extra £5 million to fix crumbling buildings, but one in three will receive less money than last year.

The Department for Education has allocated £307 million to 175 colleges to fix leaking roofs, broken windows and worn-out facilities.

The 1.6 per cent increase follows a £302 million allocation last year, which was the first condition allocation in two years.

DfE said the £5 million funding boost is part of a £1.7 billion investment from the government’s industrial strategy to modernise college buildings by 2030.

Large college groups such as NCG and Capital City College each received more than £7 million for 2026-27, while smaller institutions were allocated as low as £7,000 (see the full allocations list).

Colleges will be given the flexibility to decide how the funding is spent, so it can be directed where it is needed most.

Julian Gravatt, deputy chief executive of the Association of Colleges, said: “This funding for college estates is sorely needed.

“However, while funding for building and site maintenance is important, what colleges desperately need is adequate funding for the increasing numbers of students wanting to enrol.”

FE colleges have been reeling from the lowest 16-19 funding rate rise in years – a 0.5 per cent increase equating to a real-terms cut – announced earlier this month.

Jo Grady, UCU general secretary, said: “New shiny buildings full of students need teachers to impart the skills and qualifications the government promised it would deliver.

“Colleges desperately need money for staff, not just for buildings.”

Funding allocations squeezed for some

DfE said this year’s funding methodology mirrored last year’s. Allocations have been based on learning hours delivered in 2024-25, space requirements for each subject, modelled non-teaching space, residential space, local construction costs and total expected space.

While the methodology does include apprenticeship delivery, it excludes learning aims such as distance learning, higher education, T Level occupational specialisms, skills bootcamps or end-point assessments.

Spending guidance confirmed colleges have the “discretion” to improve campus buildings and grounds as they wish.

But the grants cannot fund IT software and equipment or be used to expand their premises or purchase land.

FE colleges are only able to invest in a building that is owned by their FE corporation by freehold or under a long-term lease, as a minimum of 25 years, at a peppercorn or nominal rent.

Fircroft College of Adult Education saw the biggest percentage increase in funding this year, 283 per cent. It will receive £160,731, four times more than its £41,960 allocation last year.

Big winners also included City Lit, whose 26 per cent allocation rise saw its grant increase by over £200,000 to just over £1 million.

Allocations data showed 43 smaller institutions, such as Capel Manor College and Craven College, will receive less than £1 million each.

Around one-third of the 175 colleges receiving funding saw a drop in year-on-year funding.

The largest decrease was at West Nottinghamshire College, which will receive nearly £2.3 million in 2026-27, over half a million pounds less than the £2.8 million awarded last year.

Ruskin College will see its allocation drop 29 per cent this year to £21,911.

The smallest allocation in the country again went to The Marine Society College of the Sea, which received just under £7,000.

Cheshire College South & West used its allocation last year to improve its ventilation systems, its Crewe campus reception and decarbonisation initiatives on all of its campuses.

This year, it will receive £60,000 less than its £2.2 million grant award last year.

Helen Nellist, deputy principal of Cheshire College South & West, said: “The redesign of our reception area has strengthened the safeguarding of learners by improving visibility and access control, and we’ve also been able to refurbish key facilities such as toilets and changing rooms.

“Additional upgrades to lighting, energy efficiency and ventilation have improved safety, comfort and sustainability.

“This investment is making a real difference for our learners, staff and visitors.”

Grady breached election rule but avoids rerun in UCU ruling

Attempts to overturn the result of the 2024 University and College Union general secretary election have failed after the certification officer ruled Jo Grady’s election rule breach would not have affected the result.

The union watchdog rejected six of the seven complaints filed by Ewan McGaughey and Vicky Blake, who both stood against Grady for the top position.

In a decision published today, one complaint was partially upheld, but an order to re-run the election would be “inappropriate”.

UCU said the two former candidates should apologise to members for “wasting time and money” on fighting the case.

The battle centred on allegations that Grady swayed the election in her favour during her campaign by using union resources, such as social media accounts, contractors, email lists and staff. The two opponents demanded that the certification officer (CO) order a re-run of the election.

The CO, Stephen Hardy, accepted Grady’s evidence that her use of UCU’s corporate StreamYard account for a campaign broadcast was a “simple, human error”, which amounted to a technical breach of UCU’s election guidelines.

However, he refused to recognise that the wrongdoing swayed the election result or that it was enough to make an enforcement order to conduct the election again.

The decision said: “This broadcast was one of many that Dr Grady produced; it was also produced some two months before the election took place; and Dr Grady did not benefit from a wider audience than she would have done if she had used her own Stream Yard account,” the report said.

McGaughey and Blake also accused Grady of blurring the lines between her campaign activity and her official duties as incumbent general secretary.

They argued that videos, social media posts and emails sent from Grady to UCU members constituted as campaigning as they raised her profile under the guise of her day-to-day job and therefore breached election rules.

But the CO threw out the complaints after it became a “recurrent theme” that UCU and Grady had to continue “business as usual” during any election.

The two opponents also accused Grady of pressuring and threatening anonymous UCU employees to work for her re-election.

The complainants submitted WhatsApp message evidence, which showed Grady venting to senior colleagues that “every single” decision had to be seen through the lens of re-electing herself as general secretary and ridding the union of socialist worker party members (SWP).

But Grady vowed the messages were taken out of context and refuted all the allegations.

That complaint was also not upheld.

A UCU spokesperson said: “It is now a matter of public record that neither the union, nor its general secretary, systematically disregarded our own rules, as was claimed.

“The union has been vindicated but significant resources have been spent on this case – time as well as money. Resources our union wants to spend on saving jobs, tackling out of control workloads, guaranteeing better education funding, and delivering for UCU members.

“The complainants have a lot to answer for. The two losing candidates in this election should consider apologising to our members for wasting time and money on this.

“And those wishing to listen to gripes and conspiracy theories, rather than concentrating on the real story of a growing crisis in our sector and its effect on our members, their students and communities, should maybe pause for reflection.”

Blake said she was disappointed with the decision.

“It took two years to get to this point but I’m not sorry that we put the complaint in,” she said.

She added: “I was disappointed but not shocked that there was this repeated attempt to frame the case in factional terms and I think one of the really saddening things was the anonymous witness evidence was given little to no weight.

“It displaced the substance of the complaints.”

McGaughey added: “We always knew it was an uphill battle and the CO very rarely has ruled in favour of finding any breaches of union rules. It’s really disappointing because the union is in such a need to turn things around.”

Election win stands

Jo Grady, Vicky Blake, Ewan McGaughey (left to right)

The CO said he was “unconvinced” that the election outcome was swayed at all due to Grady having a “clear winning margin” in the first round of voting.

Jo Grady was re-elected as general secretary for a second five-year term in March 2024.

The ballot was conducted by single transferable vote, where members select candidates in order of preference.

Grady obtained nearly 6,000 votes in the first stage, compared to McGaughey’s 4,724, Blake’s 3,837 and Sara Weiner’s 2,580.

She ultimately won in the third round of voting by just 182 votes over McGaughey, who is a law professor at King’s College London.

In total, 17,131 valid votes were cast, with a turnout of 15.1 per cent of the UCU’s 114,310 eligible members.

Grady was elected with 7,758 votes to McGaughey’s 7,576.

Earpiece exam cheat ring jailed over construction test fraud

A cheating ringleader who helped candidates pass construction health and safety tests by feeding answers through an earpiece has been jailed for more than two years for fraud.

An east London-based trio charged up to £850 per test, which involved answering about 50 multiple-choice questions on computers at Pearson VUE test centres across south east England.

Sushil Kumar (pictured right), 37, Pradeep Sheregear, 35, and Jaspal Saini (pictured left), 43, were sentenced today after pleading guilty to intentionally engaging or assisting in fraud by false representation.

Health and safety qualifications are known targets of test centre fraud because they are essential for obtaining Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) cards, which are required to work on construction sites.

The “sophisticated” scheme, which ran from July 2022 to February 2023, involved the gang training candidates to hide a “cheat phone” in their underwear and covertly move a small wireless earpiece from their waistband to underneath the test centre headphones.

A police investigation found that at least 66 candidates cheated on tests, paying the group individual payments of £500 to £850, equal to £33,000 to £56,000 in financial gain.

Kumar took a leading role in the scheme, meeting candidates in his Ilford office and instructing them to book Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) health and safety operative tests at 12 Pearson VUE test centres, including in Wimbledon, Reading, Canterbury, Guildford and Brighton.

He told candidates to book a “voiceover” access arrangement that includes headphones that play an audio recording of the questions and possible answers, which are usually shown in writing on the computer screen.

The scheme bypassed security measures which include asking candidates to place any electronic devices in a locker and sit in individual booths, which are monitored by CCTV.

On the day of the test, Kumar drove candidates to centres, parked nearby and monitored them by listening via Bluetooth devices that auto-answered incoming calls.

Once the test started, Sheregear, who police branded “the facilitator”, would call from his home in Ilford, automatically connect to the phone, and feed the correct answers to candidates.

In February and March 2023, while Kumar was on holiday, HS2 plant machinery operator Saini covered his role.

Kumar was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison, while Sheregear was sentenced to 24 months, suspended for two years, with 100 hours of unpaid work, 15 rehabilitation activity requirement days, and a three-month nighttime home curfew.

Saini was sentenced to 15 months, suspended for 15 months, with 15 rehabilitation activity days, 80 hours of unpaid work, and a three-month curfew.

Sentencing the trio today at Snaresbrook Crown Court, Judge Ross Cohen said: “Your offending facilitated cheating on a large scale.

“It is inevitable that some candidates who you helped cheat would not have passed the health and safety test without your help.

“That would result in them being CSCS accredited when they had insufficient knowledge or awareness of health and safety matters, which would in turn create greater risk to themselves and others.

“In short, this criminality entirely undermined the health and safety regime of the construction workplace, raising the risk of harm occurring.”

The investigation started after a referral by counter-fraud company PS3 Limited, which CITB contracts to investigate fraud allegations.

Police carried out a test purchase operation which involved an undercover officer attending Kumar’s office, training to use the earpiece, and attempting to cheat at a test centre.

They later arrested the trio, collecting evidence including written records of candidates and payments received, laptops, phones, wireless earpieces, and test centre sheets.

CSCS card-related fraud has long been an issue due to their value as a golden ticket for gaining work on a building site, where skilled workers are in high demand.

This includes cheats targeting test centres and, as shown in an FE Week investigation, forged cards.

In recent years, exam regulator Ofqual has fined awarding bodies, including the British Safety Council, and rebuked others like the publicly-owned Scottish Qualifications Authority, which is now called Qualifications Scotland, for failures around health and safety qualification fraud.

A spokesperson for Pearson said: “Pearson maintains a zero-tolerance policy around cheating or fraud.

“We will support all necessary actions against those involved, including working with the appropriate authorities to prosecute to the fullest extent possible.

“Pearson’s security team worked closely with CITB and officers from the Met Police specialist online and financial crime unit on this investigation and provided crucial evidence leading to these convictions.’’

Caught in the act

Video evidence provided by the Metropolitan Police shows candidates using earpieces during their assessments. At 3.30, one candidate is caught, possibly by a member of test centre staff. At 4:05, Saini is arrested by an officer for conspiracy to defraud. There is no sound until 4:05.

Probe finds £190k in overclaims at collapsed apprenticeship provider

Government investigators have recovered £190,000 in “overpayments” from a now-closed apprenticeship provider after finding inaccurate and unevidenced funding claims.

A Department for Education investigation found that between 2022 and 2025, Woodspeen Training Management made a series of funding claims that were inaccurate, breached contractual rules, or were for training that did not take place.

It followed a separate DfE investigation into Woodspeen’s smaller subsidiary, Jarvis Training Management, published earlier this month, which found £14,000 in inaccurate or unevidenced claims.

Before its offshore owners placed it in liquidation last September, West Yorkshire-based Woodspeen Training had about 1,800 apprentices in business, care, and health, while Jarvis Training Management had more than 100 apprentices.

But a DfE financial investigation was launched in October 2024, and an Ofsted inspection in March last year judged the company’s training as ‘requires improvement’ over concerns about apprentices leaving early.

According to an investigation outcome report published today, officials have recovered Woodspeen’s £189,527 in overpayments “in full”.

However, it is unclear how the funding was recovered as the DfE is not listed as a creditor in liquidator’s reports.

Insolvency practitioner Mark Reynolds, of Valentine & Co, who is overseeing the liquidation, refused to comment.

Brief summaries of the overpayments, detailed in the DfE investigation report, said Woodspeen breached funding rules through “non-compliant breaks in learning” that led to inaccurate data submissions.

Data showed apprentices were recorded as being “on a break in learning” for one to four years, meaning they were effectively “unengaged” in learning.

The company claimed payments for apprentices who continued learning “significantly” beyond their planned end dates or when “no apprenticeship training was delivered”.

In one case in 2024-25, company emails showed staff updating records for a funding claim in September, despite the last meeting taking place in June.

A separate investigation report into Jarvis Training Management found overclaimed funding for 11 apprentices with evidence “inaccurately recorded and inaccurately reported” to DfE.

According to Companies House, JTM is owned by Woodspeen Training which itself is ultimately owned by Alphen Trust, an independent investment advisory and asset management company based in Zurich, Switzerland.

Alphen Trust also owns global project management training businesses ILX Group and Progility.

Australian businessman Blake Bos, director of Woodspeen and Jarvis Training Management, signed off their voluntary liquidation in October last year after the DfE terminated their apprenticeship contracts.

In Valentine & Co’s ‘statement of affairs’ for Woodspeen, published on Companies House, the business left behind debts of £2.5 million.

This includes £800,000 to Jarvis Training Management, £500,000 to West Yorkshire Combined Authority, £307,000 to employees, and £446,000 to Progility Finco Ltd, which is owned by the same parent company.

Jarvis Training Management also left behind £300,000 in debts, including £175,000 to employees.

The DfE declined to comment.

Alphen Trust was contacted for comment.

Civil servant duo to lead Office for Students

Two senior civil servants who have been job-sharing for over a decade have been appointed to become the first joint chief executives of the Office for Students.

Ruth Hannant and Polly Payne have been hired to lead the higher education regulator, following 16 years of job-sharing together in the civil service.

The duo will take over on a permanent basis this summer from Susan Lapworth, who officially steps down on Wednesday.

Josh Fleming, currently director of strategy and delivery at OfS, will serve as interim chief executive until Hannant and Payne take over on June 15.

Long-standing work partnership

The appointments follow those of Tessa Griffiths and Sarah Maclean, who were appointed joint chief executives of Skills England last year after decades of job sharing in senior government roles.

Hannant and Payne have been working together since 2010 and were the first director general-level job-share in the civil service.

They have had five different roles job-sharing in Whitehall, including serving as directors of higher education in the Department for Education between 2014 to 2017.

They will move to the OfS from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), where they have been directors general for policy since 2021.

Hannant’s earlier career, before job-sharing, included leading Post Office reform in the Shareholder Executive (now UK Government Investments).

Meanwhile, Payne worked in the Treasury for over a decade in numerous economic and policy roles.

She has also worked internationally; in Mongolia for the Asian Development Bank, and in Zanzibar as part of the Overseas Development Institute fellowship programme.

“It is a great privilege to be appointed as chief executive of the Office for Students, having been part of its journey at the outset,” said Ruth Hannant and Polly Payne.

They added: “The Office for Students and its independent regulation plays a crucial role in ensuring those from all backgrounds can benefit from high-quality higher education.

“We look forward to working collaboratively with colleagues across the higher education and skills system to deliver for students.”

OfS chair Edward Peck said: “‘I am delighted that Polly and Ruth are bringing their extensive experience and expertise to the leadership of the OfS as we continue our journey towards becoming an exemplary regulator of higher education.

“The OfS board and I look forward to working with them as we pursue our strategy focused on being ambitious for students, collaborative with education providers and sector agencies, vigilant about the use of public money and vocal about both the strengths and weaknesses of English higher education.”

Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “This is a crucial moment for higher education, with universities facing real financial pressures and students needing confidence that their courses will have the quality to equip them for the future.”