Date Question Answer Surprised at the low attendance of the open evening. Have the Governors and school done enough to inform parents? Werrington Primary School MAT Consultation Evening FAQ s The consultation process is being conducted in line with expectations and the communications sent out to parents were clear and understandable. The LA, Local MP and councillors have confirmed receipt of the consultation documents and invitation to take part in the consultation. Has the decision already been made? Why could we not have waited for the third potential school to declare its interest? What is the difference between the top-slice taken from the school budget by the LEA, and that which would be taken by the Trust in a MAT? Why is the top-slice larger? How long does growth funding for a sponsored school last? The proposal is still being consulted upon and no decision has yet been made. We hope that they will declare before the WPS consultation period has ended. The LA top-slice is around 0.5%. The MAT top-slice could be in the 3-5% range but this figure is not yet set and would be the decision of the members and trustees Executive Headteacher/CEO and the Headteachers. Schools are already paying for services from their main budget in addition to the LEA top-slice but, within a MAT they would be able to pool their contributions towards these services and gain economies of scale. Taken directly from: Guidance Regional academy growth fund From:Department for Education First published:18 November 2016 Applies to:england The regional academy growth fund (RAGF) supports successful trusts to grow and to improve standards in underperforming schools. Trusts made up of either primary or secondary schools can apply for the fund. Regional schools commissioners (RSCs) will prioritise applications that meet the specific needs in their region and of opportunity areas where applicable. Contact your RSC office to find out more. There are 3 categories of eligibility: sponsor capacity multi-academy trust growth
new hubs Sponsor capacity This category is for new and existing sponsors looking for extra funding to build capacity to take on underperforming schools. Sponsor capacity grants are usually between 50,000 and 100,000. In exceptional circumstances, they may be higher or lower. You ll be eligible to apply under this category if your academy trust or multi-academy trust (MAT): is an approved academy sponsor (or is in the process of becoming one) has a strong track record of improving schools - we will look at the key stage 2 and key stage 4 results of schools you ve worked with, as well as their Ofsted judgements (if you re a new sponsor, we ll assess your plans for school improvement) intends to take on at least 1 school in need of support in the coming 12 months You can apply to become an academy sponsor at the same time as you apply for this funding. When assessing your application, regional schools commissioners (RSCs) will consider: how you plan to use this money to improve at least 1 underperforming school details about your school improvement teams and strategies how many schools you re planning to sponsor in the 12 months after your trust has received the funding the aims of your organisation whether your plans for expanding are realistic your knowledge of the needs of the areas you ll be working in Multi-academy trust growth This category is for MATs that need additional funding to support expansion. Multi-academy trust growth grants will be between 50,000 and 100,000. In exceptional circumstances, they may be higher or lower. You ll be eligible to apply under this category if you meet 1 of the following: you are a MAT consisting of 3 to 10 schools and you intend to take on at least 3 more schools in the coming 12 months you are an MAT of small schools and you intend to expand over 1,200 pupils you are forming a new MAT of more than 3 schools and have received an academy order from your RSC confirming their approval of your MAT When assessing your application, RSCs will consider: how you plan to use this money to support the expansion of your trust your offer as an MAT to new schools with the potential to join and how you will work with them, including the use of effective governance, leadership and accountability systems how many schools you re planning to take on in the 12 months after your trust has received the funding
the aims of your organisation whether your plans for expanding are realistic your knowledge of the needs of the areas you ll be working in New hubs This category is to support high-performing sponsors to establish a new presence or hub in a geographical area. The amount of funding available depends on each individual case. RSCs will take account of regional circumstances and the details and quality of the application. You ll be eligible for new hub funding if your trust: is an approved academy sponsor has a strong track record of improving schools - we will look at key stage 2 and key stage 4 results of schools you ve worked with, as well as their Ofsted judgements RSCs will prioritise areas in the list of new hub locations and opportunity areas where applicable. You must contact your RSC office before applying. They will give more information about their specific priorities for a new hub, and may ask for more details about your plans as part of your application. Apply for regional academy growth fund To apply for these grants, you need to complete the application form and send it to the regional academy fund mailbox by the deadline. If you have not already discussed your application with your RSC, we encourage you to contact your RSC office for more information. Regional academy fund mailbox Emailregionalacademy.growthfund@education.gov.uk Deadline for applying The deadline for submitting applications is 20 January. Note that RSCs may not wait until the deadline to start approving applications. They may wish to assess and approve applications as they receive them. RSCs will tell applicants the outcome of their application no later than 31 March. Payment process If your application is successful, we ll send you a grant offer letter that will include the grant s terms and conditions. We ll only make payments to your academy trust. If you re still in the process of setting up your academy trust and you haven t opened a bank account yet, we ll hold back the payment until the bank account is open. Payments will be sent by bank transfer (BACS) in 1 instalment. Return of payment Your RSC may ask you to return the grant if you haven t met their conditions for getting the funding or have not fulfilled commitments made in your application. New hub locations by region East of England and North-East London Cambridgeshire Norfolk, in particular Norwich
Suffolk Kings Lynn Thetford Ipswich Peterborough Wisbech Basildon Harlow South-West England Forest of Dean Plymouth and Devon Isle of Portland and Dorset East Midlands and the Humber East Riding of Yorkshire Lincolnshire Derbyshire and Derby North of England North Tees Darlington and Durham North Yorkshire, in particular Scarborough and Cumbria (particularly the west coast) West Midlands We will consider applications with a particular interest in (although not limited to) hub projects which might affect rural sub-regions. Please contact the RSC office directly. North-West London and South-Central England Northamptonshire (Kettering, Corby, Daventry, Wellingborough) Milton Keynes central Bedfordshire Bedford borough Hertfordshire Buckinghamshire Luton South-East England and South London Gravesham and Medway southwest Kent coast East Sussex West Sussex Southampton Basingstoke Gosport Isle of Wight Lancashire and West Yorkshire If you are interested in establishing a new hub in this region please speak directly to your RSC office. Contents Document information Published:18 November 2016
Does the potential MAT have a 5 year plan of expansion / target number of schools / pupils? Will new layers of management be created? Will any of the members or trustees be paid? From: Department for Education Governors further consideration: The Deputy Regional School s Commissioner has confirmed that Sponsorship additional funding is a one off payment. The MAT would receive the funding directly in one instalment. The school requiring sponsorship is highly likely to attract higher funding per pupil as a result of various prior attainment and socio economic factors. It is impossible to hypothesize in detail the financial implications of this type of situation given the actual context of the potential sponsor school is unknown to the governors at this stage. All schools interested in joining or being sponsored by a MAT are subject to extensive due diligence and a risk analysis. The MAT Executive Headteacher/CEO, Headteachers and Trustees/Members would need to agree to the sponsored school. The MAT vision is to sustain current levels of achievement and outcomes for pupils. Any activity that jeopardises the MAT vision including over expansion without the necessary capacity of the trust is not on the agenda. Trustees and members are unpaid roles. There are no plans to create layers of other paid leadership roles with additional salaries. Leadership structures already exist within each school.