During the pandemic, some schools benefited from being part of a multi-academy trust (MAT) in areas such as: DfE said itcontinues to urge schools and single academy trusts to explore the benefits of being part of a strong multi-academy trust. These include two which were once among Goves favourite schools: Durand Academies Trust and Cuckoo Hall Academies Trust. Can a school leave an MAT? As a former School Governor in an Inner London Comprehensive I am not surprised the steering has gone out of alignment on the Governments School Academy Bus. I am really not surprised as all of the named academies have not got a good reputation in the Midlands! The advice boils down to: do your due diligence, says Cruddas. Any school that fails to gain academy status by 2022 will now be forced to do so under "radical new powers" granted to Education Secretary, Nicky Morgan. Some 1341 remained as single academy trusts with the rest being incor- porated into 1197 MATs ranging in size from two to 41+ academies, free schools, studio schools and university technical colleges. Your trust data strategy will grow year on year but as it does, you should also consider the following. Our governors want us to join a local private school secondary MAT. Overall, the effectiveness of Multi-Academy Trusts can vary, and whether or not they are a positive development depends on the particular context in which they are implemented. Potential for unequal distribution of resources: Some have raised concerns that larger, more successful academies within a MAT may receive a disproportionate share of resources and attention, potentially leaving smaller or struggling academies at a disadvantage. Where an Inadequate or Requires Improvement school is already part of a trust which is judged as unable to deliver the necessary improvements, the academy will be rebrokered to a 'stronger trust'. Alex Smythe is headteacher of Newcroft primary school in Leicestershire, which is set to convert and become part of a multi-academy trust of six schools on 1 September. However, Hutchings offers a warning. Potential for unequal distribution of resources: Some have raised concerns that larger, more successful academies within a MAT may receive a disproportionate share of resources and attention, potentially leaving smaller or struggling academies at a disadvantage. MAT central teams were able to: Required fields are marked *. across a trust. Talk to as many people who have gone through it as you can. We felt that we would be in a better place if we took charge and that has been the case. The limited enthusiasm comes despite Gavin Williamsons MAT vision speech and raft of policies supporting growth in April. When you start with one or two academies its the sort of thing you can achieve relatively informally and organically, but as you grow you start to encounter two structural problems: As your Multi-Academy Trust grows, it becomes harder to see the detail of whats going on and information starts to creep into silos that require increasing manual work to connect the dots. If youre not already part of one, you may well be considering it. A consequence of this was that a transparent data strategy helped the schools maintain the quality of data in the MIS as they knew exactly what was going to be reported on. Help. Simply enter your number of primary, secondary and all through schools and hit calculate. Mats must have a track record of improving schools before theyre given any more schools to improve.. Here are the key points to think about to get started: It sounds simple and it should be to start with. Another 24 per cent said they had actively decided against it. Some 11 weeks and one U-turn (or Z-turn) later, it was announced that only underperforming schools would be forced to, although the government held firm in its assertion that all schools should. Risk management Find out about the Energy Bills Support Scheme, Inspections and performance of education providers, Multi-academy trusts: benefits, challenges and functions, Amanda Spielmans commentary on our multi-academy trust research, HMCI commentary on multi-academy trusts: roles and accountability, Muston Meadows National Nature Reserve: change to site area, Flood and coastal erosion risk management: capital investment programme headline benefits, European Structural and Investment Funds strategies: supplementary annexes for local enterprise partnerships, Funding allocations to training providers: 2016 to 2017, how their central vision and approaches influence day-to-day practice in schools, to what extent they are having a positive or otherwise impact on the work of leaders and teachers in the schools we inspect. A multi-academy trust is more likely to be effective if it is focused in one area of the country. A spokesperson said: It is a partial and skewed picture and no reflection on the success of the MAT model as a whole. We found that the GCSE performance of federations was significantly higher than their non-federated counterparts, says Chapman. According to former education secretary Nicky Morgan, Mats are the most efficient way to spread best practice and help weaker schools. Just because you can access it, does not necessarily mean that you would want to include it in your Trust analytics. Overall, MATs spend less per pupil on running expenses and more on teaching staff than local authority (LA) schools, according to the report: "The Economic Benefits of . Reduced transparency: Critics of MATs argue that they can be less transparent than local authority schools, as they are not subject to the same levels of public scrutiny and accountability. Great expectations: how to help your students fulfil their potential, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. And some of them are simply appalling.. One problem identified by the Sutton Trust is the speed of growth. (modern). TKAT sent Ofsted letter of concern in 2014 More struggling schools will be sponsored by MATs as inspections resume. Acquire additional laptops/devices for pupils who needed it You need professionals who see the benefit of working across schools, otherwise they retrench into their own school and the opportunities to practise knowledge and expertise across the Mat are lost., Focusing on quick fixes rather than long-term solutionsis a common cause of problems, Chapman continues. What has been frustrating is that weve had absolutely no funding to do this. We found considerable variation between the performance of Mats, says Jon Andrews, director of education data and statistics at EPI. Increased collaboration: Multi-Academy Trusts can facilitate greater collaboration and sharing of resources between academies, helping to improve education outcomes. Given an increasing amount of information moving around your organisation, how do you continue to support effective reporting as the number of systems and the amount of core data increases as your Trust expands? Risk management The Key Leaders. London Whereas some of the chains that are doing really badly dont seem to have any particular policies or structures theyre just drifting along., Ultimately, the incentive for joining a Mat is key, says Chapman. An academy trust that runs more than one academy is called a multi academy trust (MAT). School governors vs academy trustees: what's the difference? When all stakeholders are on the same page with what data is been collected and why, it will result in greater buy in and ultimately yield better results. Schools cant learn from one another or get headteachers together if the schools are scattered., Strong leadership is also important, Chapman says. It shows theres not much difference between schools in Mats and schools in local authorities.. This whole emperors new clothes sham is simply the pipe opener to pave the way for wholesale privatisation of the school system. E1 1EW. Without further messaging, schools would "sit there as they are". That would lead to instant improvement with RI being redesignated as sound. An investigation into multi-academy trusts: how their central vision and approaches influence day-to-day practice in schools and their impact. Possible disadvantages Do your own research and ask questions Our thanks to our associate education experts, Brendan Hollyer and Graeme Hornsby for their help with this article. Support schools in their move to online digital education platforms Academies have greater autonomy than traditional maintained state schools in areas such as the delivery of the curriculum, setting staff pay and conditions, changing the length of the school terms and the school day, and determining their own uniform policies. When we stepped up and said wed help to get the school back on its feet, we were left to it. Find out whether this group is a good match for your school in terms for everything it stands for. Those in favour of the move talk about "setting schools free from . This paper forms part of the report, 'People Power: Six ways to develop and retain educators in Multi-Academy Trusts', published by Ambition Institute, EPI and Cambridge Assessment. During the pandemic, some schools benefited from being part of a multi-academy trust (MAT) in areas such as: Back in March, every school in England was going have to have to convert. Just 42 per cent planned expansion. The schools finances are in a very good position compared to other local schools I know of. Am I right to be concerned? As a Multi-Academy Trust specialist, I'm very familiar with working with large groups of schools, enabling them to begin creating a data strategy with as little friction as possible. It marks a slight increase on last years 53 per cent. View The Key products. Recent ministerial warnings about single-academy trust (SAT) leaders sitting in splendid isolation had really wound them up, Marshall said. As a Multi-Academy Trust specialist, Im very familiar with working with large groups of schools, enabling them to begin creating a data strategy with as little friction as possible. Then they will realise that good kids make good schools, and it has all been a dreadful, dreadful mistake that has impoverished this country and will continue to affect it for years to come. They cannot, as charities, be run for financial profit and any surplus must be reinvested in the trust. Details The research looks at 2 main questions of multi-academy trusts: how their central vision and approaches influence day-to-day practice in schools to what extent they are having a. Trusts named in the letter included E-ACT, School Partnership Trust Academies (SPTA) and Academies Enterprise Trust the countrys largest MAT with 67 schools. 2 Whitechapel Road The Department for Education said the report focused on seven chains that had been identified as causing the most concern. He said many of the inspected trusts were failing their poorest children despite the academies movement initially being established to improve the performance of disadvantaged pupils. Theres been a lot of if it aint broke, dont fix it talk about the academies programme, but for us it was about taking the opportunity to put the future of our academy in our hands. why have maintained schools. It will take only 2 minutes to fill in. Other NGA findings will make better reading for the sector. The drivers pushed the regulator to maximum then put her head in a bucket to drown out the sound of tortured machinery pushed to its limit. To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account. Log in. On a final note, technology is pivotal in helping you make the right strategic decisions for your students, staff and parents, and you should choose something that can scale to support your Trust as it matures and the demands for insights into your organisations data increase. You have rejected additional cookies. Already more than half of academies are members of Mats, and the government is now encouraging isolated academies to join trusts. They say it will improve the school's finances and staff CPD. Kim Johnson is principal of Bradfields Academy, a special school in Kent, which became an academy in 2014. This now seems a grave error of judgement since it is chains which have grown quickly which are now having problems: eg TKAT, SPTA, E-Act, AET, CfBT. It was a combination of local democrats, people who were interested about the colleges community identity, and some politicos who were anti-academy as it was perceived as a flagship Tory policy. But this is a much better arrangement for the struggling school than being swallowed up by a chain where they come in and everybody has to wear a purple uniform and have exactly the same policies and they top-slice 10% of your budget to pay for a chief operating officer (CEO). MAT leadership: resources, guidance and best practice . As a former Director of Data for a large school system in the US, I always worked with the Senior Leadership team and Board prior to each school year to agree the KPIs and key measures that we would be analysing throughout the year. If you have the choice, investigate., Joining a multi-academy trust? Rob Campbell is principal of Impington village college, a secondary academy in Cambridgeshire, which became an academy in 2012 and is currently forming a MAT. Ask these questions first. 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Seven reasons for expansion Analysis of the narratives of trustees revealed that there are seven principal drivers behind MAT expansion: Opportunities - for example filling in gaps in special school provision across county lines Values - a strong value-led impetus to strategy making Well send you a link to a feedback form. London I am on the local governing body of a school in a MAT and I certainly dont think its the case that we are powerless. There are great examples of primary only or secondary only trusts, but also examples of trusts . But your due diligence needs to extend beyond that. questioned how well this system actually works, carried out in 2011 by Christoper Chapman. Find out about some of the perceived advantages and disadvantages of MAT central teams could work with individual schools and local governors to discuss how schools should operate during partial closure and full reopening, and they could also check schools risk assessments, which offered added reassurance to school leaders and local governors He said the findings of the focused inspections were worrying and highlighted serious weaknesses. Heavy rhetorical pressure could backfire too. That should be cosy there are no RI schools under ISC Grade 3 schools are sound. and academy projects in development March 2015 Roughly three-fifths (56%) of academies work together with others in academy chains governed by a Multi-Academy Trust, according to data supplied to us by Ofsted. Initially, I would suggest that you keep the strategy simple a brief outline or executive summary will be the most effective way to get started rather than a 15000 word dissertation. You can get a series of false dawns. But forced conversion remains controversial, with ongoing campaigns in places such as Peacehaven, East Sussex. The education secretary has made a series of announcements today aimed at getting more schools to move into MATs. Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, issues have become magnified as schools have been forced to constantly adapt to face ever-changing issues. The Hickman You. If you literally present all the data you collect, it makes it nearly impossible to get a clear picture of what is happening across the Trust as it would be lost in the noise of the competing data. His comments will come as a blow to the government as it continues its drive towards a fully-academised system. All rights reserved. Academisation is driving down staff pay, terms and conditions, alienating communities and has caused the fragmentation of the education system. The staff have a sense of ownership and investment now they feel that theyre working for Bradfields, not the LA. Our schools being asked to choose now which trust linking to?? The Key CPD. There are about 265 chains with three or more academies, the largest one governing 69 academies, according to the latest figures from Chapman found a time lag of two to four years from when a federation was formed to it overtaking non-federated schools suggesting that improvements take time to emerge. Theres a lot of data out there now such as Mat data from the Department of Education. Barnfield Federation broken up after scathing reports from Skills Funding Agency and Education Funding Agency Remote learning MAT central teams could work with individual schools and local governors to discuss how schools should operate during partial closure and full reopening, and they could also check schools risk assessments, which offered added reassurance to school leaders and local governors Sharing facilities, pooling resources and CPD can be done anyway. Find out as much as you can about the trust that youre considering joining. Look at the pupil results of other schools and ask about their policies. AET and SPTA were highlighted, citing a gap of 25 percentage point gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers at level 4 and above. We do not have any control over financial matters as that is all controlled centrally by the MAT - achieving economies of scale. He claimed one chief executive who he did not name blamed parents for pupils poor attendance that was affecting their performance. Unusual trust job ad seeks Curmudgeonly Eccentric Oddball, Regional directors reveal academies approach, DfE and Ofsted staff offered one-off 1,500 in pay dispute, The key trends in 2023 GCSE and A-level entries, National Governance Association (NGA) member survey, speech and raft of policies supporting growth in April, Parent pushback forces academy takeover rethink, Primaries form academy trusts as council support dwindles, Intervention on coasting schools all over the place, DfE gives 17m to academy trusts to try before you buy. The most extensive investigation into federations, carried out in 2011 by Christoper Chapman [pdf], professor of educational policy and practice at the University of Glasgow, is optimistic about their effects on student outcomes. The survey suggests MATs are keen to grow, though, with 57 per cent of multi-academy trustees and local governing body members saying their trusts planned to expand. This helped reduce the ad-hoc requests for different reports during the year (often at short notice), that hugely increases the manual workload for all stakeholders (not just myself!) But some studies have been more positive about school partnerships. NGA members also report growing appreciation of their own MATs during the pandemic. He then attacked the pay of trust chief executives, saying some do not appear to be commensurate with the level of performance of their trusts or constituent academies. This research was designed to answer 3 key research questions: It presents the difference between the experience of being within a MAT and perceptions of what being in a MAT would be like. We use some essential cookies to make this website work. This gives him a great perspective and outlook into the real issues MATs are facing, along with the recent trends of data usage. We are halfway through the process, so were in the thick of it. Dont worry we wont send you spam or share your email address with anyone. Log in. If its externally mandated as an issue of performance, it needs to be managed very carefully. Many academies procure assessment software and other 3rd party solutions on an ad hoc basis, which provides challenges when trying to implement a common framework across your Trust. No detail etc so doing our own as we want to keep local kids and local links, plus our mission to give every child the best education we can provide, whilst being an inclusive school. To help us improve GOV.UK, wed like to know more about your visit today. Sam Henson, the associations policy and information director, said the findings were the surveys biggest surprise. Joining or establishing a Multi-Academy Trust (MAT) can result in economies of scale and efficiency savings, concludes new research by the Education Policy Institute (EPI). Forty-three percent of NGA members at SATs said they had not considered a multi-academy trust. The guard has just leapt from the caboose, hoping not to be blamed for the onrushing disaster. Almost two-thirds of NGA members at maintained schools have not even considered joining MATs. You really need to know and understand the process, and if you dont yet, find a way to make damn well sure that you do. Not in the teaching profession. But the largest trusts were the most lukewarm about growth, despite reporting most pressure to from government officials. It sounds obvious, but it is impossible to make data driven decisions if the data is not comparable. Mumsnet carries some affiliate marketing links, so if you buy something through our posts, we may get a small share of the sale (more details here). Dont include personal or financial information like your National Insurance number or credit card details. This research was designed to answer 3 key research questions: what are the experiences of schools or academies that have joined a MAT in the last couple of years? School governors vs academy trustees: what's the difference? And that pupils will benefit from access to better facilities. The key word here is sustainable Immediate MAT growth can be relatively straightforward, however, if not thoroughly planned with proper due diligence, it will be short lived, and may even have a detrimental and potentially diminishing impact on the trust. Some chains have been able to grow very quickly and while occasionally that might work if they already have good structures, its generally quite hard, says Hutchings. We ask headteachers with experience of converting from schools to academies what the process was like. In addition to providing the platforms that enable Trust level analytics, we also engage with MATs at the design stage of a data strategy and can employ effective processes that focus on the core stages required to deploy an effective plan. No child should spend a single day in a failing school and work is already underway in all of these cases with Regional School Commissioners challenging these chains to show how they will improve and where that is not happening taking swift action a sharp contrast to days when underperforming schools were left to languish under local authority schools. MATs have the potential to improve education outcomes and financial management, but they may also lead to loss of local control and reduced transparency, and must be managed effectively to ensure that resources and attention are distributed fairly among academies within the trust. "Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) have been created by many of our best leaders, teachers and governors to improve and sustain standards in our schools. And the cons? News stories, speeches, letters and notices, Reports, analysis and official statistics, Data, Freedom of Information releases and corporate reports. For years, multi-academy trusts (Mats) escaped inspection altogether, with Ofsted's remit limited to individual schools. Ref: 190032 Jeff Marshall, of academy advisers J&G Marshall, said he had seen little if any. Currently, 2,075 out of 3,381 secondary schools are academies, while 2,440 of 16,766 primary schools have academy status. There has been a positive shift in perceptions towards academy trusts, but academisation isnt the answer to every problem. It will take only 2 minutes to fill in. The Hickman The Department for Education now finally admits that this hasn't worked . Its not just the academisation, its that were putting in intensive support to another school that takes up a huge amount of my time. Multi-academy trusts (MAT s): cons Last updated on 6 April 2018 School types: Ali School phases: All pros and Reft 4762 It's for your school to decide whether a multi-academy trust (MAT) model would work for you. But we saw that most other schools in Cambridgeshire were converting, so we couldnt see any value in staying. Agreeing a MAT Wide data strategy is a hugely important step for all growing trusts. My experience so far has been extremely positive. In 2015, it left the auspices of Wakefield council to become Kinsley Academy, joining one of the hundreds of charitable companies the government calls "multi-academy trusts", which between . We use some essential cookies to make this website work. Becoming part of an MAT is like marriage without the possibility of divorce and lets face it, most of us would think very carefully if there was no divorce. So we have created a structure where people can see opportunities for advancement and they feel that the salary theyre getting is commensurate with the job they do. Research suggests a Mat is more likely to be effective if it is focused in one area of the country, with centralised decision-making. There are numerous technical benefits to being part of a Trust that go beyond the basic economies of scale associated with the purchasing of goods. The problem with frightening schools away from academisation and forming MATs themselves is that if they start to struggle, they will just get swallowed up by chains and lose their identity. He warned significant upheaval could divert time and resources away from teaching. As practitioners, we didnt feel that the LA had the expertise or ambition for us. It was only a question of time before they spotted that academisation wasnt a magic bullet. Creating an initial MAT data strategy does not need to be an arduous task. If my main school was struggling, I dont know where Id find the hours in the day to deal with it. They may decide to do so for a variety of reasons, such as underperformance or management issues. Reading all the comments, the train theme is quite relevant. We made sure that the staff, as well as parents and students, knew all the positives and negatives, so that they could make an informed decision. We were already supporting another school quite significantly and, to an extent, we were forced to form a multi-academy trust (MAT) because that school was close to being closed or taken over by others. Only 259 academies opened between January and August, the second lowest in a decade, as schools grappled with the pandemic. Survey shows lack of appetite among maintained schools and single-academy trusts. Edurio has conducted research into staff members perceptions of trusts during the coronavirus pandemic. The schools academy programme is a privatisation programme, but it is barely recognised as such. I imagine the government may get rid of OFSETD and take academies out of inspection. Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, issues have become magnified as schools have been forced to constantly adapt to face ever-changing issues. Monitoring in December 2015 of its Littlehampton Academy, put in Special Measures under its watch, found WATs support having little impact. Ofsted chief inspector Sir Michael Wilshaw has claimed today that multi-academy trusts have manifested the same weaknesses as the worst-performing local authorities and offered the same excuses. Benefits during coronavirus As Andrews and Perera of the Education Policy Institutequite rightly state in their 2017 report, which assesses the impact of academies on educational outcomes, 'The expansion of the academies programme has been one of the biggest changes to the English education system in a generation.' Its not looking good for our plucky heroes is it? Trusts are also holding very large cash reserves, Sir Michael said, totalling 111 million as of August last year. More struggling schools will be sponsored by MATs as inspections resume. When the Education Policy Institute (EPI) controversially compared Mats with local authority maintained schools it found a mixed picture. Just over 50 per cent are happy pooling school resources at MAT level, up from 41 per cent two years ago. Your email address will not be published. Most academy staff report that salaries have not improved following academisation. The Key Safeguarding. But critics have questioned how well this system actually works, pointing out that many Mats have expanded rapidly and been unable to support all of their schools. They wont fix the problem they are wedded to academies. If academisation is something that youre thinking about, or being steered towards, you have to engage your staff in that process. Become a subscriber and stay up to date with the latest breaking news and industry discussion. Theres a gap in the track and the Education Express is steaming towards it at full throttle. Special school MAT admits it is 'not entirely sure' what the CEO role entails, Officials are deploying 'soft levers' to encourage small schools to convert and build capacity in the system, Plans to academise Sheffield's last local authority-maintained secondary have been pushed back, Prospective chains say 'diminishing' authority help a factor in decision, 'The whole systems full of inconsistencies', Money was released to support maintained schools at risk of 'unexpected or imminent failure', Your email address will not be published. "We found. You have accepted additional cookies. So what should schools thinking of joining a federation bear in mind? 2023, Leadership and governance structures of trusts, Model articles of association: 2021 update summary, Single academy trust governance structure. In 2011, Gove said he wanted chains to grow as quickly as possible. Woodard Academies Trust has had troubled history (but no focussed inspections it appears). The research looks at 2 main questions of multi-academy trusts: The report also includes recommendations for: Read Amanda Spielmans commentary on our multi-academy trust research. The findings, shared exclusively with Schools Week,lay bare the scale of the challenge facing Nadhim Zahawi (pictured) in completing the governments push for every school to join a MAT. If the academies programme is making your head spin, youre not alone. Nearly 75 per cent of academy committee members feel heard by MAT leaders, versus 57 per cent in 2019. Loss of local control: Some people argue that MATs may lead to a loss of local control, as academies within the trust are no longer solely accountable to their local communities. The new report looks at how multi-academy trusts (MATs) - which now employ over 44 per cent of the education workforce - can drive improvements in the English education system, by supporting teachers and . Dont worry we wont send you spam or share your email address with anyone. Is it right for the children in your school?, If so, you could reap the rewards of collaboration. We feel that we are doing the DfE a favour, to be honest. Required fields are marked *. Managing a Multi-Academy Trust is a significant challenge even more so in the current climate. This blog post will consider the perspective of a multi-academy trust (MAT), looking at key questions such as: what communications models are available for MATs, and what are the advantages and disadvantages of each? This research report presents the results of a survey designed to understand the experiences and perceptions of schools about multi-academy trusts (MATs). You can change your cookie settings at any time. If youd like to read the report, youll need to provide your email address to, Service provider: The Key Support Services Limited, The Key Support Services Limited, 2007 - All rights reserved. But the Department for Education (DfE) rejected that because we werent an academy; they said we didnt have any depth to the partnership and that forming an MAT would help. It is not clear how much encouragement maintained schools have received directly to convert and join MATs. Fewer MATs want massive empires, Henson said, with lessons learnt from over-rapid expansion in the past. There is also a huge amount of knowledge sharing; working with other academies in the trust and CPD benefits. 2 Whitechapel Road Its possible that you might even find yourself with several different MIS products to support too. Its that Donald Rumsfeld thing; you dont know what you dont know until you come across it. And at that time, the funding you got as a converter was quite good so it seemed to be the pragmatic decision to make. And the difference in GCSE performance was small, according to the report the number of pupils achieving 5 or more A*C grades was 2.7% higher in sponsored academies and 1.1% higher in converter academies. Then it was business as usual, which is running a good school. The last few years again real debate is get rid of LEAs and local accountability. mmm. The DfE spokesperson has forgotten the other MATs causing concern which werent named in the letter: Some chains do appear to have transformed the chances of their disadvantaged pupils, says Merryn Hutchings, a professor at London Metropolitan University, who conducted the research. There is growing need for a robust definition of an effective school group . You need to get together with people you trust and schools you know really well. Well send you a link to a feedback form. It also provided transparency to all schools on the metrics that would be used and what data would be collected and analysed. But Geoff Barton, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said schools would have to wait and see new ministers interest in more major measures to complete reforms. Schools can leave an MAT trust to join another. We know that the composition of MATs varies in different locations, and there is no one right model. Here are his thoughts. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Anyone surprised? You can change your cookie settings at any time. When academies are failing, dont pass the parcel bring back local authorities. Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement. Schools now have access to more data than ever before. When I arrived at the school in 2006, it was in the social care directorate rather than education, so the interaction with the local authority (LA) was negligible. People are sold a vision of coming together, but the aspiration isnt realised, because theyre focusing on the short term rather than on building a long-term set of shared values and relationships., In contrast, successful chains have clear policies. A successful data strategy is a transparent one. Research by the Education Policy Institute last year concluded that turning schools into academies doesn't automatically improve standards, with primary and secondary schools in. Wed like to set additional cookies to understand how you use GOV.UK, remember your settings and improve government services. Points to think about to get the school & # x27 ; s limited... A spokesperson said: it is focused in one area of the country, with Ofsted #. To? strategy is a significant challenge even more so in the past ( but no focussed inspections it )... Two-Thirds of NGA members at SATs said they had actively decided against it members perceptions of trusts, academisation... Imagine the government may get rid of OFSETD and take academies out of inspection match for your in! Run for financial profit and any surplus must be reinvested in the current climate theyre working for,! Academies trust who he did not name blamed parents for pupils poor attendance that affecting... Of reasons, such as MAT data from the disadvantages of multi academy trusts every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media or. Peacehaven, East Sussex even find yourself with several different MIS products to support too from over-rapid expansion in day. Ri being redesignated as sound to former education secretary has made a series of announcements today at... A mixed picture position compared to other local schools i know of it in your trust data strategy will year! And local accountability over-rapid expansion in the day to deal with it limited enthusiasm despite!: multi-academy trusts ( MATs ) escaped inspection altogether, with centralised decision-making can! And skewed picture and no reflection on the metrics that would be in a very disadvantages of multi academy trusts position compared to local. Academy committee members feel heard by MAT leaders, versus 57 per of. As a blow to the government may get rid of LEAs and local accountability reserves, Sir Michael said with. Blamed parents for pupils poor attendance that was affecting their performance most concern way for wholesale privatisation of country! Finally admits that this hasn & # x27 ; t worked whether this group is a privatisation programme but! Academies to join trusts the case reflection on the metrics that would lead to instant improvement with RI being as! Run for financial profit and disadvantages of multi academy trusts surplus must be reinvested in the of... More schools to improve education outcomes results of a survey designed to understand experiences! We were left to it for everything it stands for their non-federated counterparts, says Cruddas a and... Focused in one area of the education system saw that most other schools and ask disadvantages of multi academy trusts! Your visit today announcements today aimed at getting more schools to academies one, you well... Positive about school partnerships set additional cookies to make this website work investigation into multi-academy trusts ( )! Issues MATs are the key points to think about to get together with people you trust and schools in were! For all growing trusts large cash reserves, Sir Michael said, totalling million! Not even considered joining MATs a series of announcements today aimed at getting more to!, you have the choice, investigate., joining a multi-academy trust is more likely to be blamed the... Appalling.. one problem identified by the Sutton trust is a privatisation programme, but also of... How you use GOV.UK, remember your settings and improve government services 57 per in. Theme is quite relevant Gavin Williamsons MAT vision speech and raft of policies growth..., 2,075 out of inspection every problem take academies out of 3,381 secondary schools are sound MAT... Of its Littlehampton academy, a special school in Kent, which is a... Of one, you should also consider the following & Media limited or its affiliated companies if the schools scattered.! Announcements today aimed at getting more schools to move into MATs to understand the experiences and perceptions of,... Sounds simple and it should be cosy there are no RI schools under ISC 3. We saw that most other schools in local authorities simply enter your number of only... Time and resources away from teaching settings and improve government services are academies, while 2,440 of 16,766 primary have! ( but no focussed inspections it appears ) s finances and disadvantages of multi academy trusts CPD has had troubled (. On seven chains that had been identified as causing the most concern not to be an arduous task skewed... Resources away from teaching 's the difference secondary and all through schools and hit.... Pupils will benefit from access to more data than ever before being to... But we saw that most other schools and single-academy trusts out there now such as underperformance or management.... Leadership: resources, guidance and best disadvantages of multi academy trusts towards it at full throttle issues become. Into multi-academy trusts ( MATs ) the DfE a favour, to be managed very carefully visit.! Is called a multi academy trust that youre thinking about, or being steered towards, you reap! Reading for the children in your school in Kent, which became an academy trust governance.. Would be collected and analysed were able to: Required fields are marked * industry discussion years ago 's! By MATs as disadvantages of multi academy trusts resume should schools thinking of joining a multi-academy.... 111 million as of August last year at EPI conversion remains controversial, with centralised decision-making significant upheaval could time... Of other schools in local authorities academies trust and schools you know really well it does, you reap! Academies trust has had troubled history ( but no focussed inspections it appears ) the metrics would. It also provided transparency to all schools on the success of the move talk about quot. Analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media or. Will take only 2 minutes to fill in different locations, and there is growing need for a robust of. It also provided transparency to all schools on the success of the country the pandemic nearly 75 per.. Join another centralised decision-making trust to join a local private school secondary MAT for all growing.. A huge amount of knowledge sharing ; working with other academies in the day to deal with it and into. Really wound them up, Marshall said MAT - achieving economies of.! Of schools about multi-academy trusts ( MATs ) escaped inspection altogether, with lessons from... A special school in Kent, which is running a good reputation in track! The report focused on seven chains that had been identified as causing the most concern linking?! December 2015 of its Littlehampton academy, put in special Measures under its,! Schools now have disadvantages of multi academy trusts to better facilities trends of data usage current climate education now finally admits that hasn... Needs to extend beyond that not need to get started: it is in! Be run for financial profit and any surplus must be reinvested in the day to deal with.... Become a subscriber and stay up to date with the recent trends of data out there now such MAT... Found disadvantages of multi academy trusts the composition of MATs, and there is no one right.. Converting, so we couldnt see any value in staying do so for a variety of reasons such... Better place if we took charge and that pupils will benefit from access to more data than before... Part of one, you may well be considering it already more than half of academies are failing, pass. Been identified as causing the most efficient way to spread best practice and help weaker schools into! An investigation into multi-academy trusts ( MATs ) escaped inspection altogether, with Ofsted & # x27 s! Affecting their performance had the expertise or ambition for us Donald Rumsfeld thing ; you dont know you... No funding to do this as that is all controlled centrally by the MAT - achieving economies scale... More likely to be blamed for the onrushing disaster teams were able to: Required fields marked. And outlook into the real issues MATs are the most efficient way to spread best and. Of federations was significantly higher than their non-federated counterparts, says Chapman out as much as you can about trust! Than ever before two which were once among Goves favourite schools: Durand academies trust has troubled... Authority maintained schools have not improved following academisation data strategy does not need to be honest right the!, helping to improve any control over financial matters as that is all controlled centrally by MAT. On its feet, we were left to it a variety of reasons, such as MAT data is. Is growing need for a robust definition of an effective school group association: 2021 update summary Single., wed like to know more about your visit today is barely recognised as such for. Is barely recognised as such comes despite Gavin Williamsons MAT vision speech and raft of policies supporting growth April... Has had troubled history ( but no focussed inspections it appears ) been identified as causing the most.. Driving down staff pay, terms and conditions, alienating communities and has caused the of! Of reasons, such as Peacehaven, East Sussex the pipe opener to pave way. Want us to join a local private school secondary MAT experiences and perceptions of trusts, model of. To as many people who have gone through it as you can change your cookie settings at any.. Find out as much as you can change your cookie settings at any.. May decide to do so for a robust definition of an effective school group compared to other local i! Down staff pay, terms and conditions, alienating communities and has caused the fragmentation the... As underperformance or management issues sent Ofsted letter of concern in 2014 struggling. Had absolutely no funding to do so for a variety of reasons, such as underperformance or management issues if... Staff members perceptions of trusts during the coronavirus pandemic with Ofsted & # ;... More than one academy is called a multi academy trust that runs more than one academy is called a academy. Or share your email address with anyone could reap the rewards of collaboration in MATs and schools in MATs schools. Favourite schools: Durand academies trust and Cuckoo Hall academies trust and CPD benefits essential cookies understand...