Education department says Rachel Houchen was appointed following “fair and open competition”
A new appointee to the Office for Students board has close social ties to the regulator’s chair, Conservative peer James Wharton, Research Professional News has learned.
Rachel Houchen, who was until recently assistant headteacher at Conyers School in Stockton-on-Tees, joined the OfS board on 16 March. Since 2017 she has been married to Ben Houchen, who has served as the Conservative mayor for Tees Valley since 2017 and is a close friend of the board’s chair, Wharton.
The Department for Education says Houchen was appointed following a fair and open competition, in line with the Governance Code for Public Appointments, and that her knowledge and expertise of the schools sector would be valuable to the OfS. Her marriage to Ben Houchen is also declared in the OfS board register and there is no suggestion that any of those involved are not qualified for their roles, nor any suggestion that they have acted improperly.
However, her appointment will attract attention, not least because Wharton’s own appointment to the board was dogged by concerns over conflicts of interest. Before this, the first ever OfS board saw the controversial appointment and rapid resignation of former journalist Toby Young amid a row over his past statements on women and minorities.
As a non-executive OfS director, Rachel Houchen—who Research Professional News understands is not a member of the Conservative party—will receive £27,540 over the next three years for an estimated time commitment of 20 days per year. The board is responsible for setting strategy at the regulator.
Firm friends
Ben Houchen and Wharton have been close political allies for many years, with Houchen campaigning for Wharton in his successful 2010 and 2015 bids to become MP for Stockton. In December 2019, Wharton’s company, GBMW, made a £10,000 donation to Ben Houchen’s mayoral office.
In 2017, Ben Houchen told Tees Life magazine that he most enjoys spending time with Rachel and “a very small group of close friends”, which includes Wharton. The Telegraph has described Wharton as one of Ben Houchen’s “best friends”.
The Office for Students declined to comment. Research Professional News has contacted Wharton, and Ben and Rachel Houchen for comment.
During the appointment process, Wharton declared that he knew Rachel Houchen. The appointing panel comprised Wharton, a senior civil servant at the DfE, and independent member Mary Curnock Cook—the former head of Ucas and current chair of Pearson Education and the Dyson Institute.
The panel was unanimous that Rachel Houchen met the standard for appointment.