MAT Consultation Notice

Posted: May 11th, 2016

In the light of the Government’s announcements with regards to academy conversions (06.05.16), the consultation period related to the school’s consideration to convert has been extended to noon 07.06.16.

Questions and comments can be forwarded to the school up to that date on the original forms which can be found on the website or by contacting the school directly.

Click here for more information including the letter/questionnaire

Questions – Sir Thomas Boughey

Does the high school take on the decision making of the primary schools?

No. All schools will maintain a Governing Body and their own senior management team to oversee their own establishment. The MAT as an organisation will be ultimately responsible for the outcomes of group of schools.

Are there any simple, clear and objective reports on the pros and cons of schools becoming academies?

There are many reports on individual academies and MATs. Some are supportive and some are quite damning. The crux of the matter is not the system but the way it is implemented. There are good and bad stories about academies just as there are good and bad examples of maintained and independent schools. So there is no definitive answer as to whether they are a good or a bad initiative.

How is the pay structure going to affect the schools (CEO and above)?

The pay structure for staff will remain the same. The CEO position would be something that those schools engaging in the MAT would shape to suit the needs of the organisation. The terms and conditions of that person’s employment would be something all schools agreed to and supported.

Any other posts would also be subject to the same criteria.

Will the school’s budget be affected by this- ultimately affecting the pupils?

The MAT and all schools will be required to work within the financial limits set by the income provided. The principal reason for establishing the MAT is to provide better educational provision for the pupils of the area and therefore that is where funds should be directed.

Will school sizes stay the same?

There is no reason for these to change.

Would becoming an academy prevent redundancies and give job security?

Funding for all schools continues to be an issue regardless of their status. The MAT as a group and individual schools would seek to support staff as far as is possible. There is however the possibility that staff could be re-deployed amongst the schools in the MAT if one had a vacancy and one had a surplus.

Will don’t know/not sure decisions be taken into account? Will the decision go with the majority vote therefore the voting process is flawed?

The not sure decisions will be displayed on the pie charts along with other responses.

Answers to specific questions will be posted on each respective web-site.

The consultation and feedback process is not a voting system. The final decision will be made by the individual governing bodies based on the responses to the consultation process.

  1. I think that if we do have to go to “Academy Status” that a “stand alone” is far better.
  2. The idea of paying a CEO who knows nothing about our schools is ludicrous.
  3. I think the whole idea has been rushed.
  4. We should stay as a “maintained school” in the event of the Government changing their minds again.
  1. Unfortunately the DfE no longer allow conversion to stand alone academy status.
  2. Everyone would agree with this comment. If any school were required to join a MAT they would have to accept the appointed CEO. Given the option to convert the participating schools would be able to select, appoint and determine the CEO’s remit as someone who would be working for the benefit of all the pupils in the community.
  3. The original discussions started in May 2015 at a Trust Board meeting and has been carefully considered at every juncture. This process of responding to questions is not required – but is seen as an essential by the schools in terms of transparency.
  4. Staying as a maintained school is an option – but you would have to have assurances that the Local Authority has the capacity and inclination to support maintained schools. It would be useful for parents to consult with them on their position on schools converting to MATs is concerned.

A very astute comment given the Government u-turn within hours of our consultation finishing. However, it is important to read beyond the headlines. There are certain caveats which could be used to still have the same outcome.

Totally government based proposal with no educational reasoning. We already have links between the schools.

It is a government driven initiative. We do already have excellent links between our schools – better than most other clusters of schools. The MAT would formalise these links and ensure that the participating schools can support each other for the benefit of the pupils of the area in a way that the LA is longer able to provide.