The Scouse Oracle — @thescouseoracle
Investigation opened: May 2026
Status: Active — FOI Pending
Goldman Sachs
& Your Kids'
Schools

Seven weeks after Goldman Sachs completed its takeover of Mace Consult, the Department for Education signed a school infrastructure contract worth up to £105 million with the same firm — with a 100% uplift clause and no fresh competition required.

FOI submitted to DfE — awaiting response
Contract signed: 28 April 2026
Goldman Sachs acquisition completed: 5 March 2026
Key Findings
Finding 01
The Contract
On 28 April 2026, the Secretary of State for Education signed a Technical Advisory Services Appointment with Mace Consult Limited. Mace acts as the government's technical adviser and employer's agent on school building projects across England — overseeing the condition and delivery of the school estate.
Finding 02
The Hidden Uplift
On paper, the maximum spend is £26.25 million over two years. The contract can be extended to four years for up to £52.5 million. But buried in the contract is an 'Appointment Value Uplift' clause allowing the Department to increase the total value by up to 100% of the original contract — without going back out to fresh competition — as long as the scope hasn't "materially changed." The real ceiling: £105 million.
Finding 03
The Ownership Change
In July 2025, Goldman Sachs agreed to buy a 75% stake in Mace's consulting arm. That takeover completed on 5 March 2026. Seven weeks later, the Education Secretary signed this contract. Mace Consult is now a Goldman Sachs-owned consultancy with a multi-million pound school infrastructure relationship with the state.
Finding 04
The Contract Knew the Risk
The contract itself contains a clause: if there is a 'change of ownership or change in control' of the consultant, the Department can demand a parent company guarantee or performance bond. The question is whether DfE applied those protections — or simply signed and continued as if nothing had changed.
Finding 05
The Context
At the same time, SEND parents are fighting council by council for basic support. Schools are fundraising for essentials. Families are told there is no money. Behind the headlines, the Department is locking in a structure where a Goldman Sachs-owned firm can see its school infrastructure payday quietly double — off the back of an existing relationship and a clause hardly anyone will read.
Contract at a Glance — Secretary of State for Education / Mace Consult Limited / 28 April 2026
£26.25m
Base contract value (2 years)
£52.5m
Maximum with 4-year extension
+100%
Uplift clause — no fresh competition
£105m
Real ceiling with uplift applied
75%
Goldman Sachs stake in Mace Consult
7 weeks
Between acquisition completing and contract signing
Timeline
July 2025
Goldman Sachs agrees to acquire a 75% stake in Mace Consult Limited.
5 March 2026
Acquisition completes. Mace Consult becomes a Goldman Sachs-owned consultancy.
28 April 2026 — 7 weeks later
The Secretary of State for Education signs a Technical Advisory Services Appointment with Mace Consult. Base value £26.25m. Real ceiling with uplift: £105m.
May 2026
Freedom of Information request submitted to the Department for Education. Response pending.
Freedom of Information
FOI Request — Department for Education
⏳ Awaiting Response

Three questions submitted to the Department for Education under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Response due within 20 working days. This page will be updated when a response is received. Reference number to be published on receipt.
What to Watch

While the FOI response is awaited, these are the questions the public record should be able to answer:

Write to Your MP

You can write to your local MP asking them to raise these questions with the Education Secretary. Copy the template below, fill in your details, and send it via writetothem.com.

Dear [MP's Name],

I am writing to ask you to raise a matter of public concern with the Secretary of State for Education regarding a contract recently awarded to Mace Consult Limited.

On 28 April 2026 — seven weeks after Goldman Sachs completed its acquisition of a 75% stake in Mace Consult — the Department for Education signed a Technical Advisory Services Appointment with Mace Consult for school building and infrastructure work across England. The contract has a base value of £26.25 million, extendable to £52.5 million over four years, with an additional 'Appointment Value Uplift' clause allowing the total to be increased by a further 100% without fresh competition. The real ceiling of this contract is therefore £105 million.

The contract itself contains a provision allowing the Department to demand a parent company guarantee or performance bond in the event of a change of ownership. I would like to know whether this protection was applied.

I would be grateful if you could ask the Secretary of State for Education the following questions:

  1. When did the Department first become aware of the Goldman Sachs acquisition of Mace Consult, and was this taken into account before the contract was signed on 28 April 2026?
  2. Did the Department invoke the change of ownership clause in the contract to seek a parent company guarantee or performance bond following the Goldman Sachs acquisition? If not, why not?
  3. Does the Department intend to exercise the contract extension and/or the 100% Appointment Value Uplift clause, and if so, on what basis and subject to what scrutiny?

At a time when schools are fundraising for basic resources and SEND families are fighting for support, the public deserves to know how contracts of this scale are managed when the ownership of a supplier changes hands.

Thank you for your time.

Yours sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Address]

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Primary Sources
01 Technical Advisory Services Appointment — Secretary of State for Education / Mace Consult Limited, signed 28 April 2026. Primary contract document. Source: Find a Tender / Contracts Finder.
02 Goldman Sachs acquisition of 75% stake in Mace Consult Limited — agreed July 2025, completed 5 March 2026. Source: Companies House / published corporate announcements.
03 Appointment Value Uplift clause — contained within the contract document permitting up to 100% increase on original contract value without fresh competition, subject to scope assessment.
04 Change of ownership / change of control clause — contained within the contract document permitting DfE to demand parent company guarantee or performance bond on change of control of the consultant.
05 Freedom of Information request to Department for Education, submitted May 2026. Response pending. This page will be updated on receipt.