Gemma Peck
Biography
Gemma was appointed Director of Funding at the Education and Skills Funding Agency in April 2023.
Gemma has been a civil servant for 17 years. Before joining the ESFA she worked in the business department (BEIS), where she spent three years as the director responsible for business growth and emerging technology. Prior to that, Gemma held a number of roles in DfE, spanning apprenticeship funding reform, higher education funding reform, and school disadvantage funding; as well as time in HM Treasury leading the growth and productivity team.
Gemma is also the Head of the Operational Delivery Profession in the Department for Education, a director of a multi-academy trust, and involved in local community activities near her home in London.
Director, Funding Directorate, ESFA
The Director of Funding is responsible for the service that calculates and disburses c£70bn annually to 22,000 education institutions. This includes the allocation of all schools and academies funding, post-16 funding, apprenticeships and adult skills funding. This directorate is responsible for running major data collections and calculations, working in partnership with Local Authorities on their local funding formulae, issuing operational guidance for education providers, and providing user-friendly services that help providers manage their funding. The service is one of the single biggest funding operations anywhere in government.