Oxford college urged to reform after damaging feud

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One of Oxford University’s wealthiest colleges should consider breaking with tradition and recruiting its head from outside the clergy, an overhaul of its governance structures has recommended.

The proposal to loosen the historic relationship between the Church of England and Christ Church by 500 years was one of the recommendations in a report commissioned in the wake of an internal dispute with former Dean Martyn Percy that lasted nearly five years.

THE dispute it cost the college £6.6m in public relations and legal costs and highlighted the antiquated way in which many colleges at the UK’s most prestigious university are run.

The author of the report, former Attorney General Dominic Grieve KC, said that if accepted his recommendations “would represent the first fundamental changes for [Christ Church’s] government structure since 1867”.

He recommended amending the statute of the college to allow for the appointment of a dean “without the restriction that that person be a chancellor of sacred orders”.

The Dean of Christ Church, who has taught 13 prime ministers and boasts an endowment of almost £800m, has been a clergyman since the college was founded in 1525.

Christ Church was unique among Oxford colleges in that its dean was also head of the city’s cathedral, located on the same site. This set the stage for tensions between Percy and academics, who form the majority of the governing body. Those tensions were exacerbated by the statutes, which provided few ways for academics to remove the dean once they lost faith in him.

Grieve said his proposed reforms were also relevant to other Oxford colleges, as they sought to meet regulatory responsibilities and “more generally to become open, welcoming and inclusive of a much more diverse body” of students and staff.

He also said a dean should serve for a fixed five-year term, on an “adequate salary” and contract, supported by a smaller, more active board of directors.

Grieve said the dispute with Percy had “stretched the current system of government” and “caused damage to Christ Church’s reputation”.

Some Christ Church academics had argued that having to select their dean from the Church of England prevented the college from choosing a high-profile head.

Other colleges have been led by former senior diplomats and civil servants and other public figures. But some prominent leaders have grown frustrated with their limited formal powers and the difficulty of coordinating academics, who value their autonomy.

Sparked by his request for a higher salary in 2017, the dispute turned into a complex legal battle after Percy was accused of sexual harassment, which he denies.

Christ Church dean-designate Sarah Foot said the report was “meticulous, thoughtful and constructive” and that the governing body would now consider the findings. “This vital process will lay a solid foundation for the future,” she said.

Percy, who trampled down as dean last year, he said the report highlighted a “lack of transparency” that had “led to concentrations of irresponsible power” in some areas. “I am encouraged by Dominic Grieve’s report which advocates clarity, transparency and accountability in governance across the foundation,” he added.