Embattled Teaching Council chief executive Lesley Hoskin has resigned.
The announcement was made today by the Crown agency鈥檚 board chairman, David Ferguson.
鈥淟esley Hoskin has resigned as Chief Executive of the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand,鈥 Ferguson told the Herald.
鈥淭he Teaching Council and Ms Hoskin agree that it is in the best interests of the parties for Ms Hoskin to resign to enable the Teaching Council to focus on the profession it serves.鈥
Ferguson said Tom Gott would remain as Acting Chief Executive while the Teaching Council undertakes a recruitment process for a new leader.
Hoskin鈥檚 resignation follows a series of revelations about the agency and the release of two recent highly-critical reports.
A Public Service Commission report released last week found the council 鈥渄id not appropriately manage all aspects鈥 of a conflict of interest when awarding more than $1.1 million in contracts to a firm run by Hoskin鈥檚 husband.
It also found concerns around some of the procurement practices at the council.
And a recent independent review by consultant Debbie Francis found the organisation had lost focus on its core responsibility of safeguarding children.
As revealed by the Herald, Lesley Hoskin went on 鈥渁greed leave鈥 in October amid an independent investigation into her conduct after the PSC launched a separate probe into conflict of interest and procurement concerns at the Teaching Council.
The PSC probe was sparked by a whistle-blower鈥檚 protected disclosure sent to Education Minister Erica Stanford.
Lane Nichols is Auckland desk editor for the NZ Herald with more than 20 years鈥 experience in the industry.
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