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https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2018/06/06/education-in-the-media-wednesday-6-june-2018/

Education in the media: Wednesday 6 June 2018

Posted by: , Posted on: - Categories: Universities, Vice chancellor pay

Today's Education in the media blog looks at the steps that are being taken to tackle excessive vice-chancellor salaries.

Vice-Chancellors

Today, Wednesday 6 June, the Committee of University Chairs has published a report on vice-chancellor pay. The report includes a voluntary new code for universities to follow, which outlines that vice-chancellors should be banned from sitting on the committees that set their pay and universities will have to publicly explain their decisions about vice-chancellor pay packages.

We welcome this code and are clear that universities should deliver value for money for both students and taxpayers, so it is only right that their senior staff pay arrangements are justifiable and transparent. We have also taken concrete action to address excess pay, giving the Office for Students powers to tackle this issue if universities do not take action.

The Today Programme, Guardian, Daily Mail, Sun, Independent and BBC online have all reported on this – coverage includes quotes from Nicola Dandridge, the Chief Executive of the Office for Students who said, “We are expecting all higher education providers to justify how much those who lead their organisations are paid.”

Universities Minister Sam Gyimah said:

I am delighted to see concrete action being taken on vice-chancellor and senior staff pay, in particular the inclusion in the new code of a ban on vice-chancellors sitting on the committees that set their pay.

Universities receive significant amounts of public funding, so it is only right that their senior staff pay arrangements command public confidence and deliver value for money for both students and taxpayers.

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