This figure, paid to a recruitment firm, is noticeably higher than the cost to headhunt similar senior roles.

The University of Glasgow has spent £40,000 on recruiting its new Principal and Vice Chancellor, Andy Schofield, Hillhead Review can reveal. The sum of money was paid to the professional recruitment agency Saxton Bampfylde, which the University announced they had begun working with on 16 April 2024. 

Professor Schofield, who is currently the Vice-Chancellor at Lancaster University, will officially take on his new role in October 2025. He succeeds Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli, who announced his intention to step down earlier this year. Schofield has extensive experience in higher education, having previously served as Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of Engineering at the University of Birmingham. His academic background is in theoretical condensed matter physics, and he has held notable positions in various academic organisations, including the Science and Technology Facilities Council.

Ofgem was billed nearly half the inflation-adjusted amount compared to the University for similar headhunting services in 2011. 

The £40,000 fee billed to the University of Glasgow by Saxton Bampfylde is considerably higher than what the firm has charged for similar public sector projects. For example, in 2014, Saxton Bampfylde’s headhunting of Carol Mills as Clerk of the House of Commons cost £18,000 - equivalent to around £25,000 today when adjusted for inflation.

Furthermore, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) was billed nearly half the inflation-adjusted amount compared to the University for similar headhunting services in 2011. 

Unlike the University of Glasgow, other major Scottish institutions such as the Universities of Edinburgh, Dundee, and St Andrews have typically conducted the headhunting process internally, led by senior university members.

However, some Scottish universities have also turned to outsourced executive recruitment. The University of Aberdeen and the University of the Highlands and Islands have also relied on Saxton Bampfylde, with the latter paying £52,398 in 2020 to support the search for its new Vice-Chancellor.

Published 27 November 2024