This free online course covers the basic knowledge trustees need in the early stages of their new role.

For the second year running, the Confederation of School Trusts has partnered with Edurio to conduct the National School Trust Survey. The survey is designed to uncover the main priorities and challenges for the sector for the upcoming academic year, as well as to provide some detail on specific approaches.

The third and final part of our guidance series on executive performance review, produced in association with our Platinum Partners Bluesky Education and Browne Jacobson.

The NASUWT has now provided instructions to their members regarding participation in industrial action this autumn. Guidance for trusts on what to expect and how to manage is provided explored in this updated produced by CST Platinum Partner, Browne Jacobson.

The leadership of a group of schools working together as a single legal entity and under a single governance structure is a new field of inquiry. This paper in our Bridge To The Future series makes the case for new domains of educational leadership emerging from this field.

In February 2022, CST published an influential discussion paper asking the question, ‘What is a strong trust?’ Since then, we have engaged in a sector-wide discussion to understand how our proposed domains of organisational strength and resilience aligned with sector thinking and the emerging evidence base. This paper sets out our current policy position.

Ahead of further strike action, Platinum Partner Browne Jacobson has provided an update on industrial action.

Process planning and delivery is the second in a series of three guidance notes on the performance review of chief executives. The series provides robust sector- and role-specific guidance on the principles and practices of executive performance review to support your trust’s process from end-to-end, whatever its size or stage of development.

As part of CST's Bridge to the Future series, written in partnership with the Reach Foundation.

School trusts are facing substantial unplanned and unfunded costs. Analysis of budget information and survey data by CST has found that, without further financial support, more than half of trusts could be in deficit by 2024/5 with the remainder down to worryingly low reserves.