Crispin Hunt crosses his legs and sits back in his chair. The remnants of his lunch sit on the desk next to him and, as he fiddles with an electronic cigarette, he’s a picture of contentment.

We meet over coffee in the office the Ivors Academy chair has occupied for just under a year, inside the opulent hustle and bustle of The Ministry in South East London. When Hunt and his team moved in, the Academy was still known as ...