City & Guilds - the ongoing saga over the sale of the charity's training and awards body

The sale

In October 2025, the charity City & Guilds of London Institute (CGLI) (operating now under the brand name The City & Guilds Foundation) completed the sale of its training and awards wing to Greek certification business PeopleCert. The deal represented a transfer out of the charity of most of CGLI's assets as well as personnel, with around 1,400 staff transferring and leaving just 10-15 employees. CGLI has estimated that it received around £166m in net proceeds from the sale, and post-sale has been left with somewhere around £180m-£200m in assets overall.

The Charity Commission had been made aware of the sale in advance and "had sought and received assurances about the trustees’ decision making, but the sale did not require the Commission’s regulatory consent".

Charity Commission opens a statutory inquiry

In January 2026 the Commission launched a statutory inquiry into CGLI to look into information reported in relation to the sale and, in particular, concerns relating to the sale generally and bonuses awarded to executives, as well as trustee decision-making around the sale and entering into a 'coexistence agreement' with the new company, including the information that they were provided with and considered when making the decision.

The Commission's inquiry is ongoing.

The City & Guilds Action Group

Meanwhile, certain CGLI members formed the City & Guilds Action Group, which called for:

"An urgent, fully independent inquiry into the conduct of the Executive and Trustee Board, with full access to documentation, decision‑making records, and financial arrangements.
Regulatory intervention beyond the Charity Commission, including scrutiny by Ofqual and other relevant authorities, given the implications for the integrity of the qualifications system.
A public statement from the Department for Education confirming whether, when, and how it was consulted about the sale of all City & Guilds’ charitable assets, and what oversight, if any, was exercised."

A representative of City & Guilds Action Group explained, “one of the reasons that we were so determined to get an inquiry is because we think the Commission’s report is taking too long, and we cannot wait in relation to the issues that we're facing, and its focus is too narrow".

An independent inquiry?

In April, CGLI members voted in favour of an independent inquiry into the sale. The vote applies pressure but does not oblige CGLI / its trustees to call an inquiry.

A month has now passed. The City & Guilds Action Group thinks that CGLI is delaying. A representative said: “The City and Guilds Action Group is disappointed that the trustee board has taken more than a month to respond to the overwhelming vote of members calling for a fully independent inquiry into the catastrophic failures of governance that led to the sale of all the charity’s operating assets and the self‑enrichment of its former senior executives. It appears that trustees continue to seek ways to delay and avoid proper scrutiny and accountability."

CGLI explains: “We are reviewing options to shape [our] approach, ensuring we address members’ concerns while avoiding unnecessary duplication with the Charity Commission’s investigation […] Our priority is to safeguard the integrity and future of the institute.”

Looking ahead

We await the Commission's inquiry decision on this matter and CGLI's decision on whether to call an independent inquiry.