The boss of the Department for Education’s now-defunct property arm LocatED was given a six-figure payout – as she earned over £400,000 in her final year in charge. The firm was launched by the government in 2017 to procure sites for new free schools, before having its work extended to acquiring and selling land on DfE’s behalf and providing “an expert commercial property consultancy service”. But earlier this year, it was brought in-house by ministers following a Cabinet Office review of all arm’s length bodies. LocatED accounts, published last week, have revealed that Lara Newman, LocatED’s CEO, was handed a £140,000 “termination payment”, consisting of £114,000 in lieu of notice and a £26,000 “special severance payment”. This – along with up to £45,000 in performance-related pay – took her 2025-26 wages to at least £405,000. Her wages stood at a maximum of £270,000 the year before. ‘Combination of payments’ When approached for comment, she said: “The accounts reflect a combination of payments, set by an independent remuneration committee and signed off by the education secretary, and include salary, payments in lieu of six months’ notice, performance-related pay and pension contributions.” Accounts show the median level of pay for the company’s entire workforce stood at almost £79,000 last year. Newman’s role at LocatED ended in April, once its status changed from that of an arm’s-length body. The DfE previously said that, along with all other LocatED employees, it was committed to offering Newman suitable employment in Whitehall, with no plans to reduce headcount. This was despite her salary eclipsing that of Susan Acland-Hood, the department’s permanent secretary, who earned £180,000 to £185,000 in 2024-25. Newman has since founded Common Ground, a community-interest company “providing commercially focused property and project advice to public and private sector clients”.