Britain's highest paid college principle has come under fire for awarding her husband's company contracts worth £177,000 without telling the school's governors.

Sunaina Mann, Further Education Principle and CEO of North East Surrey College of Technology (Nescot) secured her husband's company three contracts for consulting for the institution.

Mrs Mann made headlines last month for being the country's highest paid college chief after her pay doubled in a year to £363,000.

Sunaina Mann is the Further Education Principle and CEO of North East Surrey College of Technology

Together, her and her husband Jaswinder Singh Mann made £775,000 from Nescot over the past two years, according to FE Week.

Mr Mann's company Point Nemo Ltd - of which he is the sole director - secured three contracts to work on Nescot's helping to open an all-female school in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

He reportedly signed the first of the contracts in late September 2014, but the college's board of governors were not, the FE Week said, told about the deal until a meeting in March the next year.

Nescot then told the higher education publication that he signed two more contracts in the summer of 2015, again without the board being informed.

In minutes taken from the board meeting in March, there was reference to 'disclosure errors' concerning 'related party transactions', the Times reported.

The college would not confirm whether the Manns' dealings were in breach of the school's procurement policy.

Documents detailing Nescot's financial statements for the year ending 2015 listed payments of £71,000 in 2014 and £106,000 in 2015 to Point Nemo Ltd.

Mrs Mann also claimed £49,000 in flights and accommodation, according to the Times.

Last year, the principal had a base salary of £150,000. This was topped up with allowances of £50,000, £70,000 in paid holiday and a secondary basic salary from a subsidiary company of £88,000.

Mrs Mann made headlines last month for being the country's highest paid college chief after her pay doubled in a year to £363,000

In the meeting's minutes, recommendations are made by auditors which say the college has a need for 'much better quality-management information and on a more timely basis'

They also called for 'the accurate capture of related party transactions' and a 'comprehensive register of interests' to be updated through the year.

Sally Hunt, director general of the University and College Union, told FE Week the findings were 'a real concern' at a time of 'severe cuts to adult education budgets'

'Too many college principals like Ms Mann have continued to enjoy bumper pay awards and sanction profligate spending on agencies for often questionable added value. It is time that ministers took action,' she said.