Ellen Thinnesen
Biography
Ellen Thinnesen OBE was appointed as Further Education Commissioner in January 2026.
Ellen has held senior leadership roles across further and higher education, including serving as CEO and Principal of Sunderland College and later Chief Executive of Education Partnership North East. She led the successful merger and transformation of 3 colleges, creating one of the strongest groups in the sector for quality and financial health.
Further Education Commissioner
The FE Commissioner works with FE colleges to help improve the quality and sustainability of their provision, and reduce the risk of failure. This includes providing support to colleges in formal intervention, preventing colleges from falling into formal intervention and contributing to policy development for colleges in the FE sector.
More information is available in the college and oversight support and intervention guide.