Exit of senior DfE officials triggers fears over loss of sector expertise

31 October 2011 2 mins read Lauren Higgs Education

The departure of four senior civil servants will drain vital expertise from the Department for Education (DfE), it has been claimed, as already overstretched staff struggle to manage the pace of government reform.

The permanent secretary David Bell, director general for education standards Jon Coles, and head of infrastructure and funding Lesley Longstone are all leaving the DfE by the end of the year, while Sue Higgins left her position as director general of finance at the DfE earlier this year.

John Chowcat, general secretary of the children’s services union Aspect, said that the exit of four senior figures comes at a "worrying time".

"The DfE has lost a great deal of expertise in education and children’s services because of fairly substantial staff redundancies recently," he said. "Those changes on top of current reforms, such as the academies drive, means that it is a worrying time to lose key leaders."

Period of instability

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