1. Salisbury Diocese Board of Education Academy Information Evening
David Middleton Keith Clover

2. David Middleton: Chair of Trustees Acorn Education Trust (Wiltshire)
Keith Clover: Lead Academy Consultant for SDBE
National Leader of Governors
Chair of two primary academies within a MAT
David Middleton: Chair of Trustees Acorn Education Trust (Wiltshire)
Chair of Governors Sarum Academy Salisbury

3. The Aim of this Briefing
To share the National and Regional Education Landscape
To confirm the SDBE Academy and Free School Policy
To provide clarity for all Church schools with regard to the Academy Programme
To inform delegates about the academy and MAT process

4. What this evening is NOT about.
Not here to sell the idea of academy or any particular MAT, here to make aware of the current situation.

5. The numbers so far (Nationally)
As at 1st October 2016
5758 Open Academies
65% of Secondary and 21% of Primary
A further 1004 schools in the pipeline
There are schools in the UK so this represents 27% of all schools

6. The story so far (Nationally)
U turn or Z turn?
Education Secretary Nicky Morgan said:
Making every school an academy is the best way to ensure every child, regardless of birth or background, has access to a world-class education.
I am today reaffirming our determination to see all schools to become academies.
However, having listened to the feedback from Parliamentary colleagues and the education sector we will now change the path to reaching that goal.

7. The story so far (Nationally)
Government drops Education for All Bill
Announcing the Technical and Further Education bill, Ms Greening said:
“Our ambition remains that all schools should benefit from the freedom and autonomy that academy status brings. Our focus, however, is on building capacity in the system and encouraging schools to convert voluntarily. No changes to legislation are required for these purposes and therefore we do not require wider education legislation in this session to make progress on our ambitious education agenda”.
Although no new legislation will be brought forward in this session (until May 2017), the minister’s statement makes clear the “ambition” that all schools should convert voluntarily. Therefore, it is possible that further legislation to facilitate a fully academised system will be presented in the medium term

8. The story so far (Nationally)
More information on “coasting” schools definition published
The Department for Education (DfE) has published more information regarding the definition of “coasting” schools. This year, the Education & Adoption Act introduced new provisions to define schools that are “coasting”. In March 2016, the government published its response to the consultation on coasting schools. This confirmed that a “coasting” school was one where data showed that over a three-year period, the school had failed to ensure that pupils reached their potential.

9. The story so far (Nationally)
A technical guide for primary schools published this week defines the “coasting” progress threshold as below -2.5 in reading, -2.5 in mathematics or -3.5 in writing. Schools have to be below at least one of these thresholds and have fewer than 85% of children making the expected progress to meet the definition in To be defined as “coasting”, they have to meet the definitions for three consecutive years.
Guidance published this week for secondary schools places the Progress 8 threshold for “coasting” in 2016 below Again, secondary schools are only “coasting” if their performance is under the progress thresholds for 2014 and 2015, which do not refer to Progress 8. 

10. The White Paper Educational Excellence Everywhere
The implications of National policy
Excellence: first, we will continue to set unapologetically high expectations for all children. This country’s best schools and highest performing areas already show us how relentlessly ambitious we can and should be for children from all backgrounds, and we believe that when the bar is raised, everyone benefits
Everywhere: second, we will focus on intensively tackling areas of the country that have lagged behind for too long. Wherever they live, whatever their background, prior attainment or needs, every child deserves a high quality education. We will do more to support communities where underperformance has become entrenched and ensure they can learn from the areas, leaders and schools that have made such impressive progress over the last five years

11. The White Paper Educational Excellence Everywhere
Seven main elements to educational excellence everywhere
Great teachers – everywhere they’re needed
Great leaders running our schools and at the heart of our system
A school-led system with every school an academy, empowered pupils, parents and communities and a clearly defined role for local government
Preventing underperformance and helping schools go from good to great: school-led improvement, with scaffolding and support where it’s needed
High expectations and a world-leading curriculum for all
Fair, stretching accountability, ambitious for every child
The right resources in the right hands: investing every penny where it can do the most good

12. The Regional Picture
Sir David Carter, previous South West Regional School’s Commissioner………now the National School’s Commissioner
Rebecca Clark is the new Regional School’s Commissioner

13. Our Vision
Our vision is to ensure that every child in every South West school receives their entitlement to an excellent education.  
Laura

14. Our challenge in delivering our vision include:
Significant number of coastal areas with historically low attainment
Greatest number and proportion of small rural primaries of any RSC region
Recruitment and retention of high quality staff, especially in the West of the region
Lucy

15. The SW Strategy
To deliver our vision we will prioritise four strategic objectives over the next three years:
No SW child attends a weak school and many more attend great schools
Universal high expectations feature throughout all SW schools so that local context and lack of opportunity do not limit achievement and progress for our young people
The school system develops the capacity and expertise to become self improving
Schools will lead and accelerate the pace of improvement with requirements for direct intervention reducing year on year
Lucy

16. Delivery Strands Standards Structures Capacity People & ethos
We will build a SW education system which supports improvement in all schools.
We will classify the challenges schools face in the following way:
Declutter
Repair
Improve
Sustain
This approach will inform our intervention strategy and highlight progress
The RSC will ensure decisions to form and grow Multi Academy Trusts (MATs) will be seen in the wider local and regional context.
In this way we will intentionally design the MAT landscape to make sure we make the right decisions for the schools and academies in the South West.
Capacity
People & ethos
The South West RSC team has grown significantly over the last two years.
We will ensure that our team provides a high quality service to support the delivery of government policy and the academies programme.
Our staff will be experts in the local context and provide the best advice on options and opportunities.
We will seek to build capacity within it to ensure that every school continues to improve.
We define this within the system as the capacity to catch schools before they fall into a spiral of decline.
Re-calibrate the expectations of what is possible for our highest performing schools to achieve.
We will work with and through the Teaching Schools Council to facilitate effective school to school support and develop the number of NLEs and NLGs.
Lucy

17. The Regional Picture
From 18 April, RSCs will be able to use the power of the Secretary of State to issue a performance standards and safety warning notice to a maintained school that is causing concern, in line with the Schools Causing Concern guidance.
No maintained schools will be identified as coasting until the coasting levels have been set in the autumn and revised 2016 performance data is published in December 2016/January 2017.
From that time, RSCs will be able to take formal action in a maintained school that meets the coasting definition.

18. Academies within the Diocese
Single Academies: 13
Established MATs:
15 containing 39 academies
The largest established MAT contains 7 academies(1 secondary, 1 community primary and 5 church primary schools)
The smallest MAT contains 1 secondary (known as an empty MAT)

19. Academies within the Diocese
In the pipeline:
Number of MATs currently forming: 5 containing 17 schools
Number of schools applying to join existing MATs: 9
Total 78 out of 196
40% of all church schools

20. Academies within the Diocese
All of the Multi Academy Trusts established within the Diocese have met our stringent criteria.
Their Articles of Association are required to match our requirements to protect the Church School distinctiveness and effectiveness
Each MAT has to provide us with information to allow us to be confident that it has the appropriate vision, governance structures and Foundation Members and Trustees/Directors before we will sanction the establishment of the MAT

21. SDBE Academy and Free School Policy
Have you seen it?
Have you read it?
Can anyone remember the SDBE Vision?
March 2016
Our vision is to facilitate a landscape of multi academy trusts across the diocese that stands the test of time: preserving, protecting and enhancing church school distinctiveness and effectiveness

22. SDBE Academy and Free School Policy
BUT:
Since March 2016 the landscape has changed again.
No small successful schools will be forced to join a national academy chain - most small schools will choose to join multi-academy trusts made up of other local schools, though small sustainable schools will be able to convert alone if they wish
The RSC has confirmed that she will NOT be agreeing to a large number of small MATs across the SW
The RSC has confirmed that if a school chooses to convert to an academy they should join a local, established, MAT
The RSC has confirmed that she will expect small MATs to join with other MATs

23. Breaking news 04/11/2016
Headteachers say that thousands of smaller primaries and secondaries are becoming financially unviable.
ASCL states that one form entry primaries and secondaries with 600 pupils or fewer will ‘fall of a cliff’ unless new funds are found
Real term cuts of 8%, savings will have to be made by sharing resources and support services.

24. Number of "coasting" schools revealed
Breaking news 11/11/2016
Number of "coasting" schools revealed
The Department for Education (DfE) have released provisional figures on the number of schools whose performance falls within the “coasting” definition which is being introduced for the first time this year.
The DfE estimates that 804 schools will be designated “coasting”, including 479 primary schools (3.5% of the total) and 327 secondary schools (10.7% of the total).
No school can officially be designated “coasting” until validated data is published in December.
Where schools do fall into the “coasting” definition, the regional schools commissioner (RSC) will make an assessment of what intervention, if any, is required.
Governing boards should be prepared to demonstrate their strategy and how any identified issues will be addressed.

25. David Middleton
David will talk about the establishment of the Acorn Education Trust and then we will have time for any questions

26. The MAT journey ? ? ? ? ? ? Dilton Marsh CE Primary 2008 2012 2014
Good Outstanding Academy/MAT

27. The MAT journey ? ? ? ? ? ? The key factors: Succession planning
Finance
Academic improvement
Dilton Marsh CE Primary ? ? ? ? ? ?
Good Outstanding Academy/MAT

28. The MAT journey ? ? ? ? ? ? The options: Stay with LA Singleton
Form MAT
Join MAT
Dilton Marsh CE Primary ? ? ? ? ? ?
Good Outstanding Academy/MAT

29. The MAT journey ? ? ? ? ? ? The options: Stay with LA Singleton
Form MAT
Join MAT
Dilton Marsh CE Primary ? ? ? ? ? ?
Good Outstanding Academy/MAT

30. The MAT journey 2014 2016 2017 + St Johns Kingdown + Heytesbury
+ St Johns
+ Heytesbury
+ West Ashton
+ ???
Kingdown
Dilton Marsh
Avenue
+ Keevil

31. The MAT journey ? ? ? ? ? ? The key factors: Succession planning
Finance
Academic improvement
Dilton Marsh CE Primary ? ? ? ? ? ?
Good Outstanding Academy/MAT

32. Top Tips! Being in the right MAT will strengthen your school / academy
Research
Self analysis
Marriage of research and self analysis
Define your community
Don’t rush into structure
Capacity v Cost
Benchmark your decisions in moral terms

33. Questions