GAG pooling is a spreadsheet conversation right up until the point it is not. Then it becomes a conversation about fairness, identity, trust, control and whether the phrase 'one trust' actually means anything when money starts moving away from the school gate. That is why it can make sensible people behave defensively. It is not because school lead...

When Esteem Multi-Academy Trust was approached about acquiring an independent provider specialising in one-to-one tuition for young people at risk of exclusion, many of whom had Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs), the proposal appeared to fit well with the Trust's long-term ambitions.The organisation's specialist expertise offered t...

The Department for Education has published the Academy Trust Handbook 2026, which comes into effect on 1 October 2026. This year's changes cover inclusion, financial competence, digital standards, procurement, workforce decisions and public transparency. Some will affect decisions trusts are already making, including senior appointments, contract r...

Ensure a smooth transition and maintain accurate HMRC records Most payroll migrations go smoothly. The problems often don't appear until weeks later, when HMRC starts treating an employee as though they've started a completely new employment. One of the most common causes is a change in payroll number that hasn't been reported correctly. Because pa...

Most trust boards would say they take cyber security seriously. They will probably have policies in place, staff will have completed phishing training, and somebody will be responsible for software updates and backups. But could the trust continue operating safely after a serious cyber incident? That is a harder question to answer. The Government's...

As school budgets are stretched tighter by inflation and the cost of living crisis, it's increasingly important to take a second look at areas where you can make efficiencies, rather than cuts. Managing the procurement process to ensure that your school or trust gets the best value for money is a way to economise without sacrificing quality. While ...

The UK government has recently unveiled the 2024 edition of the Academies Financial Handbook, bringing forth crucial updates and simplifications aimed at enhancing governance and financial management within academy trusts. This comprehensive guide explores the significant changes and their implications, offering insights for Multi-Academy Trust (MA...

Nobody wants to fall prey to a phishing scam, let alone the disruption and issues they can cause to your school or trust. There's a good reason that such scams will continue, though: They are successful enough for cybercriminals to make massive profits. Phishing scams have been around practically since the inception of the Internet, and they will n...

Payroll in schools is expected to be straightforward: staff are paid correctly, on time, every time. But in reality, it's one of the most complex and high-risk administrative functions in education - and one many schools quietly struggle to manage. Not because teams aren't capable, but because the demands have outgrown the way payroll is ...

Multi-academy trusts (MATs) are under increasing pressure to maintain financial sustainability while continuing to deliver high-quality education. This is especially true in today's climate, as MATs face increased scrutiny from regulatory bodies, rising operational expenses, and unsteady government funding streams. Even with ongoing uncertainties, ...

Like any corporate organisation, an academy needs to be in the pink of its financial health. However, in an era of rising costs, staff salary demands, and an evolving economic climate, the pressure to sustain and maintain finances in the education sector has become more intense than ever. Like every year, academies and multi-academy trusts (MATs) h...

TikTok fight leads to surprise Ofsted visit Concerns over the safeguarding at Northampton International Academy have been raised after a TikTok video showed three students punching and hair-pulling two other students. The academy has had many ups and downs with its safeguarding in recent months. The school was rated 'good' in its last full Ofsted i...

 DfE to stop reporting Covid absences The government has returned to pre-COVID updates on the absence. The DfE removed its "questions on pupil absence due to COVID-19", which means that there will no longer be a record of absences caused by COVID. Schools will now include any COVID-related absences under the 'illness' code on the register. How...

A contract rolls over because everyone is busy. A trusted supplier gets another year because changing feels risky. A purchase sits below a threshold, so nobody thinks much process is needed. In schools and trusts, procurement problems are rarely caused by one major decision. More often, they come from small assumptions that build up over time. Peop...

As multi-academy trusts grow, payroll and HR processes often come under pressure very quickly. What works in a smaller trust can become much harder to manage once more schools, more staff and more local variation are added into the mix. In many cases, the issue is not that payroll stops running or HR stops functioning. The challenge is that the cen...

School leaders are entering a new era where reputation, retention, and long-term planning matter more than ever. For decades, many schools planned around growth. Rising pupil numbers supported expansion, increasing budgets, recruitment activity and long-term development planning. But across England, that environment is beginning to shift. Falling b...

With schools continuing to face rising costs, increasing SEND demand and growing pressure on budgets, many leaders are looking beyond traditional funding streams to support their pupils, staff and facilities. Grants can provide valuable financial support for everything from technology upgrades and wellbeing initiatives to SEND provision and major c...

Appraisal season can be a stressful time for teachers and school leaders. Even the most experienced and confident teachers can feel nervous when it's time to review their performance. However, appraisals shouldn't be viewed as a tick-box exercise or a process designed to catch people out. Instead, they should form part of a wider conversation about...

Why growth changes the operational demands behind multi-academy trusts Growth does not just increase the number of schools within a trust. It changes the operational demands behind how those schools work together day to day.What once worked effectively across a small number of schools can quickly become harder to manage consistently at scale. Proce...

When Keystone was set up, we knew that we would primarily provide support to schools in a range of areas, such as HR, health and safety, auditing, and trust growth support. Over the past 12 months, we've been approached by a few school business professionals who are looking at setting up new MATs. Nominative determinism is the idea that people tend...