The new chief executive of the Scottish Qualifications Authority has been announced as Nick Page, the former boss of Solihull Council, who resigned in 2023 following criticism of the authority after the killing of six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes.
Mr Page, who started his career as a secondary teacher, will start his new role on Monday 7 July following what the SQA described as a “UK-wide search” for a “high-calibre leader to drive transformation of [the] national awarding and assessment body”.
The SQA also highlighted Mr Page’s “track record of successful delivery, service transformation and improved outcomes across a 30-year career spanning teaching, children’s services and local-authority leadership”.
Transforming the SQA
This is a crucial period for the SQA, after MSPs voted this week to back the Education (Scotland) Bill - paving the way for the SQA to be replaced by a new body called Qualifications Scotland. The new body has long been trailed as becoming operational in autumn 2025; today the SQA said this would happen in December.
Mr Page began his career as a classroom teacher, later becoming a senior leader in children’s services at Salford City Council.
He was chief executive at Solihull Council - a role he took on in 2015 - when a January 2023 Ofsted report found children facing “significant harm” due to delayed responses. The council’s children’s services were rated “inadequate” in the inspection report, which was published after Arthur Labinjo-Hughes was killed by his father and his father’s partner in June 2020.
A spokesperson for the SQA said: “Nick Page chose to step down from his last role after a critical inspection.
“It was a principled decision to allow fresh leadership to take improvements forward.
“The SQA board carried out full due diligence and was unanimous in its selection. Nick was also the unanimous choice of the SQA staff panel, which interviewed all candidates.”
Mr Page was “identified as the outstanding candidate following a rigorous recruitment process”, led by SQA chair Shirley Rogers, the SQA said in a statement this morning announcing the appointment.
The SQA stated: “Nick Page’s long career in public service has included periods of significant achievement and, more recently, leading through complex and challenging circumstances in Solihull. He is committed to learning from all aspects of his experience and to ensuring the highest standards of leadership and accountability in his new role.”
It also said that he was appointed from “a high-calibre field following a recruitment process that targeted senior leaders from multiple sectors across the UK”. The SQA advised that, as with all such public appointments, the cabinet secretary for education, Jenny Gilruth, “was invited to approve Mr Page’s appointment”.
The SQA added: “Throughout his career he has championed openness, partnership working, accountability and delivering improved outcomes for young people.”
Ms Rogers said: “We set the bar high to find a dynamic leader with the depth of experience, values and commitment to public service and partnership that our organisation - and Scotland - needs.
“I am absolutely delighted that Nick has chosen to join us. His career spans many achievements and a proven ability to lead through both change and challenge.
“I am confident that, drawing on these experiences and a commitment to learning from them, Nick will drive the positive transformation that ensures Qualifications Scotland delivers for every learner, every educator and every community.”
She added: “I also wish to thank John Booth for stepping up as interim chief executive and for the positive contribution he has made while leading our organisation.”
‘Resetting’ relationships with teachers
The SQA said that a priority for Mr Page will be the Prospectus for Change, the body’s corporate plan that seeks to “reset relationships” with teachers and students and “win back their trust” following the well-documented problems of the Covid years.
The SQA also highlighted that it will now have three former teachers leading it: Mr Page, chief examining officer Donna Stewart and former headteacher Sarah Brown, who will also join SQA in July to lead on the new Schools Unit.
Mr Page said: “I look forward to bringing my experience - and the lessons I have learned - to my new role. I want to begin by thanking my new colleagues, who have demonstrated great professionalism and successfully delivered over these past years of challenge and uncertainty.”
He said that the SQA was “already transforming at pace to build strong foundations for Qualifications Scotland”, adding: “We will accelerate that work to deliver a future that improves outcomes and supports learning and teaching.”
“As a former teacher from a family of teachers, I am keenly aware of the challenges faced in classrooms, colleges and across the education community, especially since the pandemic,” he said.
The new Schools Unit will “ensure that the way we develop and deliver our products and services reflects this new reality, while safeguarding the credibility and value of qualifications”, Mr Page added.
He said that another priority will be to “ensure that assessment and awarding align with wider pathways for success”.
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