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The former boss of the Department for Education’s property company received a £140,000 exit payment as the organisation was absorbed into central government - pushing their total remuneration to at least £425,000 last year.

Lara Newman, former chief executive of LocatED, received £113,779 as a contractual payment in lieu of notice and a further £26,261 special severance payment, the firm’s final accounts reveal.

In September last year, it was announced LocatED would be folded into the DfE from April, following a government review of arm’s-length bodies.

LocatED was set up by the DfE in 2017 to find sites for free schools, although its mission was later broadened to include identifying efficiencies across school estates.

The payment to Ms Newman was made under a settlement agreement, .

It also shows her permanent contract was subject to six months’ notice, though the DfE publicly announced in September that LocatED would move into the department by April, which is seven months.

����Vlog has asked the DfE why a payment in lieu of notice was required, and what the special severance payment covered.

£425K remuneration package

The termination payment took Ms Newman’s salary and allowances for 2025-26 to between £365,000 and £370,000, up from between £220,000 and £225,000 the previous year.

She also received a performance-related bonus of at least £40,000 and £13,600 in employer pension contributions.

Excluding employer pension contributions, Ms Newman was paid between £405,000 and £415,000.

Performance-related pay was awarded through a process agreed with its remuneration committee and in line with its DfE-approved pay framework, the accounts state.

This brought her total remuneration, including pension contributions, to between £425,000 and £430,000, up from £280,000 and £285,000 the previous year.

Ms Newman’s base salary, excluding the termination payment, was between £225,000 and £230,000.

It comes as the earlier this month that, from September, academy trusts will need approval before advertising new senior appointments with proposed remuneration above £174,000.

Schools could ‘self-fund’ building projects

Ms Newman now runs a not-for-profit estates consultancy called Common Ground.

In a recent interview with ����Vlog, she said schools could “self-fund” building projects through “creative” uses of their site, such as installing padel courts.

LocatED made £18.5 million in 2025-26 from selling surplus sites and securing planning permission for 670 homes, the accounts show.

It saved the education sector an additional £3 million through property advice and £3.25 million through the management of education assets.

LocatED said four of its five key performance indicators were rated “exceptional”, including the quality of its advice, savings from managing sites and the value secured on acquisitions, while its performance on property disposals was rated “good”.

In an introduction to the accounts, Ms Newman said while the closure of LocatED was not “anticipated or sought”, the expertise developed by the body will “continue to serve the education estate within the DfE structure”.