The Charity Commission has escalated its scrutiny of City & Guilds by opening a formal statutory inquiry into the controversial sale of its awarding body commercial arm.
The investigation will probe reported million-pound bonuses awarded to at least two executives who worked on the deal for the 150-year-old charity as well as trustees’ “decision making”.
The regulator said earlier this week it was seeking to “obtain more information” before deciding its next steps. In an announcement today, the Charity Commission said it opened a formal inquiry on January 7 in response to “new information” about the sale.
Under powers in the Charities Act 2011, a statutory inquiry allows the regulator to dig deeper into serious concerns about a charity’s conduct – and, if necessary, use “protective powers” to safeguard the charity’s assets, reputation or beneficiaries.
A Charity Commission statement said: “The inquiry will examine:
- “Information provided by the charity to the Commission regarding the sale of the awarding, assessment, and training businesses of the charity in October 2025 to PeopleCert (under the company known as City & Guilds Vocational Education and Apprenticeships) following concerns raised in public reporting relating to the sale and bonuses awarded to its executives
- “The trustees’ decision-making regarding the sale and entering into a ‘coexistence agreement’ with the new company, including the information that they were provided with and considered when making this decision.”
Investigators are seeking details of what information trustees knew when selling the City & Guilds’ awarding and training business to Greek-owned global certification company PeopleCert in October 2025.
According to a report in The Guardian, the awarding body’s chief executive Kirstie Donnelly was awarded a £1.7 million bonus alongside a £100,000 salary increase to £430,000.
Finance director Amid Ismail also reportedly received a £1.2 million bonus and 30 per cent salary increase to £300,000 per year.
City & Guilds Foundation has claimed that its trustees were “not involved in any pre or post-deal conversations regarding remuneration matters for City & Guilds Limited executives that would apply after the sale”.
The commission said it “will now examine” new information and “may extend the scope” if additional issues emerge.
In a statement today, trustees of the City & Guilds Foundation, formally known as The City & Guilds of London Institute, said: “We acknowledge the Charity Commission’s statutory inquiry and are cooperating fully with their investigation.
“We remain confident that all actions taken by the trustees have been proper, transparent, and in line with our charitable purpose.
“We are committed to maintaining public trust and will continue to act in the best interests of the charity and its beneficiaries.”
“We acknowledge the Charity Commission’s statutory inquiry and are cooperating fully with their investigation. We remain confident that all actions taken by the Trustees have been proper, transparent, and in line with our charitable purpose. We are committed to maintaining public trust and will continue to act in the best interests of the charity and its beneficiaries.”
According to the Charity Commission’s policy, it will publish a report detailing the issues, action taken and inquiry outcome.
What is a statutory inquiry?
The Charity Commission, the official regulator for the sector, opens statutory inquiries in “serious cases of abuse and regulatory concern” in the administration of charities.
According to its published guidance on statutory inquiries, the decision to open one is “not taken lightly” and depends on a “careful assessment of factors”.
The regulator says that it investigates to establish the facts, decide what action to take, and that inquiries should not be seen as a determination of “wrong-doing”.
The policy adds: “If the allegations made or causes for concern are not substantiated, the inquiry will say so.”
Powers the Charity Commission has if it finds misconduct by trustees can include removing them from office or appointing new trustees, disqualifying individuals from acting as trustees or senior charity staff in future, or directing the charity to take specific actions.
Recent high-profile inquiries include The Captain Tom Foundation, in which the regulator found that the family of a pandemic fundraiser damaged public trust by refusing to donate proceeds of his book deal.
The findings were published two years after the inquiry was opened and resulted in the disqualification of two trustees for periods of 8 to 10 years.
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