Geoff Russell’s complete remuneration package, including a pound;50,505 pension contribution, gives him the top spot in the pay league with a total of pound;258,343 for the year.

But it is not clear how long he will remain the highest paid: an LSC spokeswoman declined to reveal the salaries for the chief executives of two new agencies that will replace the FE funding body next month.

The roles were advertised at pound;140,000. But with Mr Russell confirmed as the Skills Funding Agency chief executive and Peter Lauener as chief executive of the Young People’s Learning Agency, the funding body said only that they were being paid in line with pay band 3 of the senior civil service. This is the highest pay bracket and allows for a maximum salary of pound;208,100 a year and a minimum of pound;101,500.

School heads are also catching up, according to the survey figures.

The “executive headship” of Henry Compton and Fulham Cross federation of schools in London is advertised at pound;120,000 to pound;150,000. Standard starting pay for an academy head is pound;110,000.

The highest known state school package was estimated at pound;183,000, including an pound;80,000 bonus, for Sir Alan Davies, former head of the Copland School in Wembley.

Only Jackie Fisher of Newcastle College, who heads campuses and training companies with a turnover of some pound;117 million, can match this with a salary of pound;184,000, according to the LSC’s 200708 data.

But even the highest salaries in FE are dwarfed by the pay of university vice-chancellors, where the biggest earner makes pound;474,000.

See TES Magazine, pages 10-17.