Collaboration academies multi academy trusts Some key governance
Collaboration, academies & multi academy trusts Some key governance issues Paul Aber NGA Head of Training Development 14 th June 2016
NGA is a membership organisation NGA is an independent charity representing trustees and governors all state funded schools in England, both academies and LA maintained schools. Our aim is to improve board effectiveness by providing expert and tailored information, guidance and advice, and challenge when appropriate. Standard membership is £ 79 GOLD membership is £ 260 and includes an advice line © NGA 2015
Today The move towards forms of collaboration and academisation. § the direction of travel for governance bodies § what Ofsted is looking for § changes schools will need to make to their governing structure if choosing to convert § building the organisation - the skills sets that schools should be looking for § recruiting for governance § additional responsibilities that academy governors have compared to nonacademies © NGA 2015
Direction of travel © NGA 2015
The government's view • Benefits are most fully realised when a collaboration is consolidated through formalised cross-school governance arrangements. • When boards govern groups of schools we also see further improvement in the quality of governance. • Boards gain a more strategic perspective. • Governing a group of schools is different to governing a single school © NGA 2015
The government’s view § Education White Paper – Educational Excellence Everywhere – “continued determination to see all schools to become academies in the next 6 years” – compulsory conversion only where § for underperforming schools where they can benefit from the support of a strong sponsor § the LA can no longer viably support its remaining schools because a critical mass of schools in that area has converted* § where the LA consistently fails to meet a minimum performance threshold across its schools, demonstrating an inability to bring about meaningful school improvement* *for future legislation © NGA 2015
Our “destiny” paper The Benefits of Collaboration • Strong collaboration with shared accountability can lead to better pupil outcomes • Shared thinking and planning to spread expertise • Sharing human resources across the MAT helps with succession planning, recruitment and retention • Easier to find and fund specialists and provide richer curricular and extra curricular activities • Shared professional development • Financial efficiencies • Governors can come together to share strategic thinking, support and challenge each other © NGA 2015
Statistics Type of establishment Primary Secondary Total Academies (3, 046) 18% (2, 023) 59% (5, 302) 25% Free Schools 1% 7% 1% LA Maintained 81% 34% 74% © NGA 2015
The statistics – size of MATs % Academies by trust size 1 2 3 --5 6 --10 11 --20 21 --30 31 --40 41+ © NGA 2015
What is Ofsted looking for? © NGA 2015
Trends § there is more emphasis on governance in Ofsted inspections § expectations of governance are greater but reasonable § external reviews are being recommended where governance is judged to be weak § inspectors sometimes struggle to understand the governance arrangements in MATs § MATs need to be clearer about their governance arrangements § MATs need to ensure that those who ‘without strong and effective governance, are accountable are available to meet our schools simply won’t be as good as they can be’ with Ofsted during inspections HMCI © NGA 2015
Changes to governance structure © NGA 2015
Typical maintained school governance structure Co-opted Staff HT Parent Co-opted Local Authority Co-opted GOVERNING BOARD HT Standing Committee 1 Standing Committee 2 Ad hoc Committee Associate Member
Typical stand alone academy and MAT structures MAT (Members) Single Academy Trust (members) Multi Academy Trust (Board of Trustees) Board of Trustees Committees © NGA 2015 Academy 1 Academy 2 Academy 3 Local Governing Committee
Df. E guidance … references to the governing body should be taken to refer to the entity … that is responsible for exercising governance functions – which in the case of multi-academy trusts (MATs) may be the academy trust board, a local governing body, or a sub-committee responsible for discharging governance functions. When specific reference is made to particular governance roles in an academy context the term ‘trustee’ will be used for those on the board of the trust and ‘local governor’ for those on a local governing body. Governance handbook, p. 6 © NGA 2015
The role of the trust board The language of MATs Members Trustees Directors Articles of Association Scheme of Delegation Cluster Governing Committee Local Governing Committee Academy Council Parent Council © NGA 2015
Academies and the trust § The Articles of Association (Ao. A) will set out the members of the trust § The role of the trust’s board depends largely on the structure of the academy trust, and what is delegated § If governors are also charitable trustees and company directors they need to be familiar with the responsibilities and expectations of these roles – More information on role of trustees can be found via the Charity Commission – As directors there are specific returns relating to companies which have to be submitted annually to Companies House, and you will need to ensure that there are systems in place for the submission of these returns as directors can be held personally liable if these returns are not submitted © NGA 2015
The roles Members – Minimum of three, Df. E prefer 5, usually original signatories to the memorandum, should be separation from the board – Must meet once a year – Usually approve articles of association and any changes – Receive audited accounts Trustees / directors – Number and how appointed or elected is described in articles of association Local/cluster governing committee members – Number and how appointed is described in scheme of delegation Chief Executive Officer / Chief Operating Officer – Appointed by the trust board to run the trust Executive HT/Principal/head of school – Appointed by the chief executive to run a group of schools or a single school © NGA 2015
A word about the role of the members § Members have limited powers but can usually appoint trustees § The power to appoint trustees should be taken seriously because the quality of trustees will impact on the effectiveness of the board and consequently on the effectiveness of the organisation § Members can be trustees but it is not good practice to have all members as trustees – there should be some separation of powers § A member can be an organisation which then nominations a person to be the ‘face’ of that organisation § If the MAT has a sponsor, it can usually appoint members and trustees © NGA 2015
The role of a sponsor A sponsor: § Is an external organisation that helps the school in some way § May be a religious group, a university, another school, a charity or a business § Provides support which can include financial help, but more likely will have a track record in turning around underperforming schools § Is approved by the Df. E – there is a list § May be responsible for large numbers of schools which are often referred to as academy chains § Has a role in governance (and therefore can influence) by appointing members and/or trustees © NGA 2015
Academies and MATs -additional governance responsibilities © NGA 2015
Trust Board responsibilities Memorandum § Describes the legal status of the company and the purpose or charitable object of the organisation Articles of Association § Act as the ‘rule book’ § Describes who will govern and what their responsibilities are: – Appointment / election of trustees / company directors – Meetings: how many, quorum, voting – Powers and duties Scheme of Delegation § Acts as terms of reference for the cluster or local governing committees / academy councils – Must make clear the powers and duties of the committees / councils © NGA 2015
Company director and trustee responsibilities Company directors: • Companies Act 2006 sets out the seven general statutory duties of a director • As directors there are specific returns relating to companies which have to be submitted annually to Companies House, and you will need to ensure that there are systems in place for the submission of these returns as directors can be held personally liable if these returns are not submitted Charity trustees: § Have overall responsibility for governing a charity. They decide its strategy and direct its management. § Trustees accept responsibility for directing the affairs of the charity and that it delivers its charitable objects. § More information on role of trustees can be found via the Charity Commission website. © NGA 2015
Local governing committee responsibilities Local Governing Committees § Are committees of the board § Their responsibilities are described in the scheme of delegation or terms of reference § The trust determines the scheme of delegation § Not all schools in the trust have to have the same scheme of delegation Local Advisory Body / Academy Council § Often used when the local committee has few governance functions Parent Council § A stakeholder group with a consultative role © NGA 2015
Structures and lines of accountability © NGA 2015
Model 1: delegation to local governing committees (LGCs) © NGA 2016
Some model structures for MATs © NGA 2016
Considering structures and delegation § How many schools can one trust board govern? – Or how many pupils can one board govern? – Does geography and travel distance matter? – Is cluster governance an option? – How is duplication avoided? § Would different levels of delegation – from an executive led ‘school improvement board’ to ‘earned autonomy’ to a’ local governing committee’ be an option? © NGA 2015
Some challenges for MAT governance Separation of functions between members, trustees and local committees – Minimising layers of non-executive (governance) structures – Avoiding duplication of lines of accountability with executive leadership – Marrying the executive and non-executive structures – Discussions with Ofsted: ‘the appropriate authority’ Q. Is there honesty about where accountability lies? Q. Is everyone at all levels clear about how accountability works? Delegating decision-making to school level – Many MATs are reducing local committee responsibilities Q. Is there a need for school level governance? NB Need to avoiding conflicts of interest, including with executives © NGA 2015
Building the organisation – skills needed © NGA 2015
Management structures Question 1: Leading your MAT – Who will lead? An existing leader? A newly recruited or appointed executive HT? Or a CEO? What training will s/he need? – Where will the MAT offices be? Question 2: Managing the business – Who will lead on finance? – And health and safety? – And other MAT issues e. g. HR and performance management? Question 3: Clarifying accountability – Will roles be duplicated? © NGA 2014 © NGA 2015 www. nga. org. uk 31
Recruiting for MAT governance © NGA 2015
Sources § Current governors § [SGOSS] § Academy ambassadors https: //www. academyambassadors. org/ © NGA 2014 © NGA 2015 www. nga. org. uk 33
© NGA 2015
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