Jermaine Jenas’ incredible £10m side project outside the BBC | UK | News
Jermaine Jenas appears to have a lucrative “side hustle” to fall back on after being made redundant from his high-paid job at the BBC, the Express can reveal.
Education recruitment agency Aquinas Education was founded by the former Premier League star in 2009 as a joint venture with old Nottingham school friend Craig Anderson.
The company, wholly owned by the couple until May this year, charges a fee for connecting supply teachers with schools in London, Liverpool and the East Midlands.
Jenas was previously described as the company’s CEO in an article on its website website on an agreement to provide the Diocese of Westminster with staff for Church of England schools in London and the Home Counties.
The fired presenter also promoted the company in posts on social networksincluding a video montage on his Instagram page with behind-the-scenes footage from The One Show.
In May, when the company was acquired by tech startup Zen Educate, Anderson cashed out his investment. The exact amount paid was not disclosed, but it came after Zen raised $37 million from investors.
The former Match of the Day actor has, however, retained his stake following the sale and has become a brand ambassador for the company. The Express has contacted Zen to clarify whether Jenas, who has admitted to sending inappropriate messages to two colleagues on The One Show, will continue in the role following his dismissal by the BBC and has yet to receive a response.
Aquinas Education has not met the official threshold for publishing revenue details on House of societiesBut Gary Hemming, the director of commercial lending at ABC Financewhich analysed the company’s billing information in its most recent accounts, published on 6 February 2024, estimates the figure could be in the region of £10.2m.
“The revenue is hard to come by because of the type of accounts they publish,” he explained.
“There are several ways to calculate a rough figure. In the accounts, there is a figure for an invoice discount facility.
“Invoice discounting allows you to release money on your invoices before they are paid by your customer.
“Most such companies could release up to 90% of their unpaid invoices and most invoices would be paid within 30 days.
“At the date of the last accounts they had £768,407 in arrears, which at a 90% advance rate would bring their outstanding invoices to approximately £853,785, meaning a probable annual turnover [in the region] of £10.2 million.
In March 2023, Thomas Aquinas was appointed on the government’s Crown Commercial Services Procurement Framework allowing it to supply teachers to schools across the country. The company also acts as a supplier to educational institutions in Dubai and has a section of its website describing the benefits of education in the United Arab Emirates.
Have you met Jermaine Jenas in his role at Aquinas Education or elsewhere? Contact him by emailing zak.garnerpurkis@reachplc.com
