Michael Bichard

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Biographical Information

"Michael Bichard served as the Chief Executive of Brent Council between 1980 and 1986, and then of Gloucestershire County Council between 1986 and 1990. In 1990, he was appointed as Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency.

"In 1995, he was made Permanent Secretary of the Department for Employment. When it merged with the Department for Education (DfE) to form the Department for Education and Employment (DfEE), he became Permanent Secretary of the combined department. During his tenure as Permanent Secretary, he oversaw some significant changes to the education policy landscape, such as the introduction of the Learning and Skills Council to fund further education and apprenticeships.

"He was Director of the Institute for Government from 2008 to 2010 and currently serves as one of its first ‘fellows’. He is an advisor to Ten Group in its professional support services division which comprises the support service for school leaders (The Key) and the support service for school governors (Ten Governor Support). He serves on the boards of the Globe Theatre and the River & Rowing Museum. He became Chair of the Social Care Institute for Excellence in April 2013.

"He was appointed as a knight in the Order of the Bath in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 1999. He was a created a life peer in March 2010."

Affiliations

• Founding Advisory board, Transition Institute