Governing a school trust

Course overview

The programme is delivered through four online sessions in which seminar leader, Jackie Eason MBE, will set out an exciting and compelling definition of trust governance.  In each session, Jackie will be joined by a guest contributor to share insights gained from their trust practice and journey. Across the course, you’ll learn more about effective leadership and boardroom practice in the context of the following topics:

• Brave, bold and effective trust governance structures
• Board leadership of your vision and culture
• True accountability and a relational approach as the keys to success
• Understanding compliance but not being compliance-led

Session one: What do we do? An introduction to trust governance (structures)

In the first session, trustees will receive an introduction to the principles that underpin effective, ethical and accountable trust governance, how the governance community can be structured in a trust and the corresponding roles and responsibilities. CST's Director of Trust Governance, Samira Sadeghi, will introduce our innovative and inspiring Next-gen governance principles.

Session two: How do we lead? (board leadership)

The second session focuses on how to deliver strategic leadership in a trust. We explore leadership mindsets and how to foster a healthy organisational culture that aligns with the trust’s values. We describe how to work with executive leaders to develop strategies, while remaining agile and horizon scanning for risks and opportunities. We will be joined by Alex Walmsley, Trust Board Chair from The Ted Wragg Trust, to hear about its highly successful people strategy. We will also explore the concept of civic trusts and the wider role they can play in their communities.

Session three: How do we know? (accountability)

Having set a strategic vision for the trust, the third session asks how, as trustees, we can know that the trust is on track. We explore the different ways trustees can monitor, evaluate and hold executive leaders to account around educational quality, financial health and the overall delivery of the trust’s charitable objects. Ben March, Chief Financial Officer from STEP Academy Trust, a 20-school trust, will share their innovative approach to setting key improvement indicators (KIIs), which enable the board to hold strategic accountability.

Session four: How do we behave? (compliance and care)

This final session ends where we started: we ask how we seek assurance that we are fulfilling our duty to advance education for public benefit. We explore what it means to exercise reasonable care, skill, and diligence at all times, through risk-informed practice, careful management of conflicts and a culture of continuous learning and development of the board to ensure we have the right skills, knowledge and experience to enact this sacred duty on behalf of children. Andrew Levitt, Trustee from Castle School Education Trust, a 9-school trust, will share their approach to risk management and assurance.