Doug Stott
"I manage my own private affairs, in the same way as I look after College affairs. I’m not someone who would go home on an evening and go gambling, or put £2000 on a racehorse. "
Doug Stott is the Executive Director of Finance for Bradford College. He is a qualified accountant, and by the age of 26, Doug Stott had already been promoted to the position of Financial Controller. Following this appointment, Doug’s posts have all since been at Director level. This includes over 18 years experience in Education – the last 12 years of which, have been here at Bradford. Find out more about Doug, the man – his work for a charitable organisation, and what makes him proud to work for the College. In a candid interview, Doug reveals more…
Doug joined the College in 1998 and is responsible for all financial matters relating to the College, its subsidiary and affiliated companies. Before joining the College, Doug spent over 22 years in senior financial positions within industry. Doug explained: “I worked mostly with multi-national public limited companies, before moving into education in 1998, which coincided with the approval of the 1992 HE & FE Education Act. This removed FE colleges from local authority control and established them by statute, as ‘exempt charitable trusts’ responsible for their own autonomy.”
Defining, in simple terms, what his role as Executive Director of Finance entails, Doug explained: “Fundamentally I have to safeguard the assets of the College. I have to ensure its solvency and financial viability, for the longer term.”
When asked what Doug feels he has brought to the role, Doug remarked: “I think I am an astute accountant. I’ve been doing this job a long time. So I feel I am well experienced in what I do. In many respects, I manage my own private affairs, in the same way as I look after College affairs. I’m not someone who would go home on an evening and go gambling, or put £2000 on a racehorse. I feel in order to be a good accountant you need to apply the same principles. I run my own financial affairs exactly the same way as I do for the College, so there is the same consistency in the way I approach things.”