Academy school leaders in England face pay cap to curb ‘banker-style’ salaries

The era of academy school leaders in England receiving “banker-style salaries” and hefty annual increases may soon be over, with the government to introduce limits on executive pay. Nearly 100 academy chief executives earn more than £200,000 a year, with pay in academy trusts equating to anything from less than £5 a pupil to more than £150. Only a quarter of the high-earners were women. The education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, is expected to announce a cap of £174,000 on academy trust executive salaries, with government approval required to advertise pay packages above that amount. She is also expected to limit future pay increases to the same annual awards agreed for teachers. An announcement is likely to come on Wednesday, followed by the annual pay recommendation for teachers in England from the government’s independent review body. Sources told the Guardian that Phillipson will require trusts running academy schools, including multi-academy trusts (Mats) responsible for state schools, to follow executive pay rules similar to those used in the NHS and further education colleges. The Department for Education declined to comment, but a government source said: “This is a straightforward matter of fairness, for both the taxpayer and teachers. “Academy trusts are doing brilliant work for millions of children. But we simply cannot have double-figure pay rises on top of six-figure salaries. …