Gove sets limit on headteacher pay

Headteachers are facing a limit on their salaries to the £142,500-a-year pay of the Prime Minister. Education Secretary Michael Gove wants to impose the cap on all salary deals agreed from September.

At present, about 100 state school heads are thought to earn more than £150,000 a year, the highest on £183,000.

The proposal infuriated headteachers' leaders who warned it would make recruitment to some of the toughest, most disadvantaged schools more difficult. The cap is likely to hit academies first where salaries regularly can be above £150,000 a year to attract the most talented heads to join schools in disadvantaged areas.

Sir Alan Davies, head of Copland school in Brent, west London, had earned £183,000 in a year, including a bonus of £80,000.