Register of ESFA board members’ interests for the financial year 2024 to 2025
Published 17 July 2025
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2025
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/esfa-annual-report-and-accounts-2024-to-2025/register-of-esfa-board-members-interests-for-the-financial-year-2024-to-2025
Introduction
The Corporate governance in central government departments: code of good practice states that all relevant interests of individual board members should be published. This document sets out the declarations of interests for the Education and Skills Funding Agency’s (ESFA) executive and non-executive members during the financial year 2023 to 2024.
Entries reflect member’s current positions, based on a member’s discretionary judgment of what might form a potential conflict of interest, based on guidance from the conflict of interest section of Code of conduct for board members of public bodies.
Where a board member has left the department, their interests have been reported as at their most recent declaration.
The list covers:
- remunerated directorships
- other remunerated employment, office, profession and other activity
- public sector or charity positions of influence
- significant shareholdings or interests in public or private companies
- miscellaneous and unremunerated interests
- disclosure of family members’ interests
Executive members
Andrew Thomas
Public sector or charity positions of influence:
- Mercia Learning Trust - Trustee
Gemma Peck
Public sector or charity positions of influence:
- Twyford Church of England Academies Trust - director
Lindsey Henning
Public sector or charity positions of influence:
- Lea and Wessington Framework Federation - Chair of Governors (to 30 September 2024)
No interests declared
David Withey (to 23 March 2025)
Non-executive members
Martin Spencer
Public sector or charity positions of influence:
- Achieving for Children - non-executive and Chair of Audit and Risk Assurance Committee (ARAC) (to 13 June 2024)
- Civil Service Commissioner
- Companies House - non-executive director
- Criminal Cases Review Commission - non-executive director
- Hampshire and the IoW Integrated Care Board - non-executive director
- London Fire Brigade - audit committee member
- Ofsted - non-executive and Chair of ARAC
- Submarine Delivery Agency - non-executive director
Harjit Sandhu
Significant shareholdings or interests in public or private companies:
- Soha Housing Limited
John Lakin
Public sector or charity positions of influence:
- School Teachers Review Body – member (to 30 September 2024)
Peter Kane
Public sector or charity positions of influence:
- Epsom & St Helier NHS Trust - Chair of Audit Committee, board member
- Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS)
- St Georges NHS Foundation Trust - Chair of Audit Committee, board member
- Crown Prosecution Service – Chair of Audit Committee, board member (from 1 December 2024)
Paul Woodgates
Public sector or charity positions of influence:
- Advance HE - trustee
- The British Council - trustee
- De Montfort University - Independent Governor and Chair of Finance and Performance Committee (to 15 May 2024)
- De Montfort University – Deputy Chair of the Board of Governors (from 16 May 2024)
Miscellaneous and unremunerated interests:
- Advance HE - non-executive director
Significant shareholdings or interests in public or private companies:
- Paul Woodgates Limited