Graeme Paton and Helen McCormack
Published:
09 September 2005
Ken Boston, head of the QCA, who earns £284,838 a year
Teachers’ pay is back in the spotlight. Again. An annual debate, which gathers pace over the summer months, will come to a head in October when the School Teachers’ Review Body makes its recommendations on salaries.
Ruth Kelly, the Education Secretary, has already had her penny’s worth – by proposing a 2 per cent pay rise for most teachers. The National Union of Teachers wants an extra 10 per cent and the National Association of Head Teachers and Secondary Heads Association have asked the review body to widen the pay gap between classroom teachers and heads. But what about those who set the salaries?
Today The TES turns the tables on the politicians and officials who have the biggest influence over teachers’ pay to reveal who are the real winners and losers in the education sector. From the classroom assistants at the bottom to the superheads at the top, the gulf in school pay has never been wider. But to find out who the richest members of Education UK are, we need to look beyond the classroom – to the select band of unelected education quangos.
Top of the tree for the third year running is Ken Boston, chief executive of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority. The Australian, a former head of education in the state of New South Wales, faces more headaches than most, and in recent weeks has been forced to deflect annual claims of dumbed-down A-levels and poorly-graded GCSEs. But, to cope with all his stresses, QCA accounts reveal that Dr Boston received £134,828 in benefits last year, including £31,106 in tax paid by the quango and return flights to Sydney. It also paid the rent on his London property, the accounts show, and his overall package – including £145,000 in salary – increased from £279,828 to £284,838 in 12 months.
Mark Haysom, chief executive of the Learning and Skills Council, is next on our list after earning £218,000 last year; a figure which is dwarfed by the £430,000 (plus share options and other benefits) he took home in his previous life as managing director of national newspapers at Trinity Mirror.
See the full Education Rich List in this week's TES
