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4 June 2026

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Principal sums: 97 college chiefs now on £200k-plus packages

Analysis finds three colleges now spend over £300k on their bosses

Billy Camden

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The number of colleges paying £200,000 or more for their chief executives grew by more than a third last year, with the total nearing 100, FE Week analysis shows.

Three leaders now sit in the £300,000 club – one more than the previous year.

FE Week’s annual investigation of college boss pay packages shows a relatively equal gender split among the highest-paid leaders, rising numbers of performance-related bonuses, and one six-figure severance payout for the principal of a college that almost went insolvent.

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