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OFT invites nominations for trustees as part of the agreed resolution of the independent schools investigation

139/06    28 September 2006

The OFT is inviting nominations of suitable candidates for appointment as trustees of an educational charitable trust to be established as a result of its investigation into information sharing between independent schools. The OFT is also inviting comments on the proposed appointment of Tim Head FCA and Nigel Matthews OBE as trustees.

As part of the agreed resolution of the OFT's investigation earlier this year, the schools involved agreed to make ex-gratia payments totalling three million pounds into a trust designed to benefit pupils who attended the schools during the relevant period. Under the terms of the resolution, the trust will be administered by trustees appointed by the Chairman of the OFT following consultation with the Charity Commission and with the parents of pupils. The OFT proposes to appoint Tim Head and Nigel Matthews as initial trustees, and invites comments on this proposal from those who paid fees to the schools in respect of the academic years 2001/02 to 2003/04.

The OFT is also considering appointing between one and five further trustees, and invites nominations of suitable candidates who would be interested in acting as trustees. Under the terms of the agreed resolution, nominees must be independent of any staff or members of the governing body or trustees of any of the schools concerned. The trust will be a charity and, save for the reimbursement of their reasonable and necessary expenses, trustees will be unpaid.

See consultation section of the website for more information.

The OFT is continuing to proceed to a final, formal decision for issue later this year which will record the competition law infringement admitted by each school as part of the agreed resolution.

NOTES

1. The OFT issued a statement of objections in its Competition Act 1998 investigation in November 2005 (see press release 214/05).

2. Following discussions with a steering group chaired by the Independent Schools Council (ISC), the OFT announced in May 2006 that it had agreed a resolution of its investigation (see press release 88/06). Under the terms of the settlement, each of the 50 schools admitted that its participation in the exchange of sensitive information through the 'Sevenoaks Survey' involved a distortion of competition and infringed competition law. Each school will pay a nominal penalty of £10,000 which will be collected by the OFT on behalf of the Treasury. The schools do not, however, make any admission that the agreement had any effect upon fees.

3. The schools concerned are: Ampleforth College, Bedford School, Benenden School, Bradfield College, Bromsgrove School, Bryanston School, Canford School, Charterhouse School, Cheltenham College, Cheltenham Ladies College, Clifton College, Cranleigh School, Dauntsey's School, Downe House School, Eastbourne College, Epsom College, Eton College, Gresham's School, Haileybury School, Harrow School, King's School Canterbury, Lancing College, Malvern College, Marlborough College, Millfield School, Mill Hill School, Oakham School, Oundle School, Radley College, Repton School, Royal Hospital School, Rugby School, St Edward's School, Oxford, St Leonards-Mayfield School, Sedbergh School, Sevenoaks School, Sherborne School, Shrewsbury School, Stowe School, Strathallan School, Tonbridge School, Truro School, Uppingham School, Wellington College, Wells Cathedral School, Westminster School, Winchester College, Woldingham School, Worth School and Wycombe Abbey.

4. The trust will be independent of the schools with trustees appointed following consultation with the Charity Commission as well as parents. Schools will make equal annual instalment payments into the trust starting in 2006 with the last payment no later than 31 December 2010.

5. The first trustees of the trust will be appointed by the Chairman of the OFT, Philip Collins.

6. The participation of two of the schools (Sedbergh School and Truro School) in the infringement was limited to two of the three relevant academic years, 2002/03 and 2003/04 in the case of Sedbergh School and 2001/02 and 2003/04 in the case of Truro School.

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