The government’s education property company LocatED is set to be absorbed into the Department for Education, it has been revealed.
Launched eight years ago to procure sites for new free schools, the firm is now expected to move into the DfE by April 2026.
Its work has been extended to acquiring and selling sites on the department’s behalf and providing “an expert commercial property consultancy service” to officials and schools. Falling rolls have meant fewer new schools.
Officials said the move, announced today, will see LocatED’s “commercial expertise” combine “with the department’s capability in delivering capital programmes, policy knowledge, and strategic oversight”.
Cabinet Office quango review
It comes after the Cabinet Office launched a review of all arm’s length bodies across government earlier this year.
DfE permanent secretary Susan Acland-Hood said: “I’m delighted to be welcoming LocatED colleagues even more closely into the department.
“[This will] help us manage and transform the education estate, make it sustainable, give great value to the taxpayer, and support excellent outcomes for children and young people.”
DfE added the new, “unified” team “will be better positioned to identify opportunities, streamline processes, and deliver more coherent support to schools, academy trusts, local authorities, and other education providers requiring specialist property guidance”.
LocatED’s latest accounts state it “generated important capital receipts, delivered substantial savings to the public purse and is at the heart of delivering programmes to enable our schools to reduce their energy consumption and carbon emissions”.
No redundancy plans, says DfE
In 2024-25, it was given a budget of just over £9 million. Around £2.2 million was spent on “project related pre-acquisition costs for sites [and] mixed-use developments”.
A further £5.4 million went towards employee costs. CEO Lara Newman was paid between £220,000 and £225,000. She was handed between £40,000 and £45,000 in performance-related pay.
“I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved since our establishment in 2017,” she said.
“Throughout this transition, our clients and partners can expect the same high-quality service and expertise they’ve come to rely on.”
Her wages eclipse those of Acland-Hood, who took home £180,000 to £185,000 last year. The DfE said she would remain CEO until April 2026.
The department added that, along with all other LocatED employees, it is committed to offering Newman suitable employment in the department. It has no plans to reduce headcount.
When asked if Newman’s salary will be maintained, DfE said it cannot comment on the remuneration of individual LocatED employees.
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