Bank of England supremo Spencer Dale has pocketed a Gold Award from the Association of Colleges (AoC). Spencer, Executive Director and Chief Economist at the bank, was nominated by Exeter College in recognition of his remarkable success in his chosen field following his time in further education.

Spencer, who is also a member of the Monetary Policy Committee, has credited his College with sparking his interest and enthusiasm in economics. He was presented with his award at the House of Commons yesterday (15 June).

The AoC Charitable Trust presents the Gold Awards to a select number of former College students each year in recognition of the vital role further education plays in the careers of the winners and of their continuing achievements in their chosen field.

Spencer studied A-levels, including economics, at the College from 1984-86 and his success prompted him to go on to take a BSc and then a Masters degree in Economics before joining the Bank of England in 1989. He was appointed Private Secretary to Mervyn King in 1997. Between 2006 and July 2008 he was on secondment from the Bank of England, working as a visiting Senior Adviser in the Division of Monetary Affairs at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

He maintains strong links with the College; he has visited to speak to current students of the College’s Reach Academy, and has met his former tutor, Richard Taylor, who still lectures there. He has also agreed to lend his name to a new award – the Spencer Dale Economics Student of the Year – to celebrate the achievements of current students.

Spencer paid tribute to his College and said: “I am very honoured to have been nominated for an AoC Gold Award. I owe a big debt to Exeter College. It was the place at which I was first introduced to the potential power and reach of economics, and my Economics A-level teacher Richard Taylor helped to develop my interest and enthusiasm for the subject.”

His former economics lecturer, Richard Taylor, remembers Spencer as “an exceptional student who always did seem destined for great things”.

The Association of Colleges’ Chief Executive, Martin Doel, said: “The AoC Gold Awards draw attention to the superb work done by both students and their Colleges across a variety of sectors and prove that, no matter what your aspirations, further education can make a significant contribution to your future success. I’d like to extend my congratulations to Spencer, who demonstrates just how far students can go when their talent and ambition is both recognised and nurtured.”

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To highlight the important role further education plays for students today, the AoC Charitable Trust runs a ‘mini me’ campaign alongside the Gold Awards with the nominating Colleges each selecting a current student who shows promise in a similar field to their Gold Award winner.

David Burridge, 18, has been taught Economics by Spencer Dale’s former teacher, Richard Taylor. David is expecting A-grades in his A-Levels in Economics, Maths and Human Biology this year and already has an AS Level in Business. He has applied to study Economics and Finance at university.
In September, he was one of a select group of students who attended the lecture by Spencer Dale when he returned to Exeter College to talk about his experience as Chief Economist at the Bank of England. David remembers: “It was inspiring to meet such an important person in the field of economics. I was particularly interested to hear how he had progressed from our College to the Bank of England.”
David is keen to follow in Spencer’s footsteps and become an economist for a large corporation and hopes one day to fill his father’s shoes and take over the family business. He was excited at the prospect of being able to meet Spencer personally and said: “To meet Spencer Dale is an amazing opportunity. I couldn’t wait to ask him what he enjoys about his job and if he has any tips or advice for me.”