Non-Executive Director X 2

Lion Academy Trust

Lion Academy Trust has nearly 3,500 pupils across six schools in North East London and Northamptonshire. It seeks two non-executive directors with senior audit, finance, HR or safeguarding experience. Board meetings are held in Leyton, London.

About the trust

The Lion Academy Trust (LAT) was founded in 2012. It currently has six schools across eight sites - five are primary schools (3-11) and one is a junior school (age 7-11) with three based in North East London and three in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire. The Trust has been highly successful at improving outcomes for the children in all its schools in both performance and all-round provision.

The trust has 3,481 pupils and 323 staff across all the schools with a budget of £17.1m. There are 48 languages spoken in the schools with 83% of pupils having English as an additional language. 33.4% of pupils currently qualify for Free Schools Meals and Pupil Premium equating to just over 1,000 pupils.  All of the schools in the Trust who have formed a part of the organisation for more than three years are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted and all have been transformed from their starting points of being in an Ofsted category (Requires Improvement or Inadequate).

Since 2014, the Lion Academy Trust has worked to deliver a parent-driven application for a new secondary school in Waltham Forest – Barclay Secondary Free School. Find out more information at http://www.lionacademytrust.net/our-academies/barclay-secondary-school

Allied with the schools in its sister trust (Lion Education Trust) the Lion Academy Trust leads the way in the on-going quality review and development of its core pedagogies and operating practices, which are deployed equally across both Trusts. The two Trusts reflect current best operational and strategic needs, although they are likely to merge in the future.

Plans for the future

The key challenges for the board over the next 12-24 months are:

1. Finance: supporting the ongoing upward trajectory of all schools in a financially constrained, highly regulated sector.
2. Free School: Lion Academy Trust is at a point where they are going to a planning committee to determine the next steps forward (March 2019)
3. Performance: The trust’s key priority is to support all of academies in becoming rated 'Good' by Ofsted, ultimately become 'Outstanding' schools and centres of educational excellence.

In the longer term, the trust aims to continue developing the next generation of leaders and subject matter experts to ensure that the offer is both broad and balanced and continues to meet the needs of every learner on their educational journey. 

Trust ethos & values

The right to an outstanding education.

A relentless pursuit of excellence.

Our students are the reason we exist.

http://www.lionacademytrust.net/our-trust/our-values

Role summary Number of positions advertised:

2

Trustees – or non-executive directors - are both charity trustees and company directors of the academy trust; the role is to hold to account the executive and senior leadership team. The board of trustees manages the business of the academy trust and may exercise all the powers of the trust. The trustees ensure compliance with the trust’s charitable objects and with company and charity law.

Role 1 – Trustee/Non-Executive Director (Chair of Audit)

The Audit Committee is an advisory body, authorised by the Board to investigate any activity within the Trust or the Academies within its terms of reference, and to seek any information it requires from staff, which are requested to co-operate with the Committee in the conduct of its enquiries.

Person specification

The competencies required for this role include:

Essential

• Qualified Accountant
• Audit Committee Chair

Desirable

• Chair
• CFO/ Finance
• Legal/Compliance
• Succession Planning

Candidates should have a strong financial background, preferably with Audit committee and/or Board level finance experience and have knowledge of risk management and statutory compliance obligations. They should have the skills to challenge in a constructive and insightful manner, be independent and have balanced judgement. Familiarity with the current Charity Commission would be an asset.

Time commitment

Six hours month minimum. There are three scheduled board meetings per year, these are held at 12noon and do not exceed 2.5 hours. There are opportunities for remote access to board meetings, although attendance in person is preferable.  Within our governance structure, there are four committees whereby appointments are based on the skills and attributes of Trustees.  Full details of our governance structure can be found on our website: www.lionacademytrust.net

Role 2 – Trustee/Non-Executive Director

As the Trustee responsible for safeguarding children, you will play an essential role in ensuring children in the school are kept safe from harm. The Safeguarding Trustee plays an important role in ensuring oversight and scrutiny of safeguarding policy, procedure and practice on behalf of the Trust Board.

Person specification

The competencies required for this role include:

Essential

• Non-executive/ Trustee
• HR

Desirable

• Legal/Compliance
• Risk
• Experience of policy implementation

The Trust welcomes applicants with a senior HR background and strong understanding of risk management. Safeguarding Lead (DSL) or equivalent, knowledge of Education systems to enable clear monitoring and assurance of compliance via regular checks would be an asset.

Time commitment

Six hours month minimum. There are three scheduled board meetings per year, these are held at 12noon and do not exceed 2.5 hours. There are opportunities for remote access to board meetings, although attendance in person is preferable.  Within our governance structure, there are four committees whereby appointments are based on the skills and attributes of Trustees.  Full details of our governance structure can be found on our website: www.lionacademytrust.net

Location of board meetings and trust website

Board meetings are held at Lion Academy Trust, Barclay Primary School, Hoe Street, Walthamstow E17 9AA (less than ten minutes’ walk from Walthamstow Central)  For more information, please see http://www.lionacademytrust.net/

Governance structure

Please see http://www.lionacademytrust.net/our-trust/governance

Background on academy trusts

Academy schools, which are charities run independently of local authority control, now account for 74% of secondary schools and 31% of primaries – and their number is growing all the time.

Many of these schools are grouped together as multi-academy trusts (MATs). There are currently 832 multi academy trusts of 3+ schools. If the schools are to fulfil their potential, the trusts need non-executives (known in charity law as trustees) to bring a wide range of skills and experience to help guide strategy, ensure their ambitions can be soundly financed and keep their schools up to the mark delivering for their pupils.

“Academy boards must be ambitious for all children and young people and infused with a passion for education and a commitment to continuous school improvement that enables the best possible outcomes. Governance must be grounded in reality as defined by both high-quality objective data and a full understanding of the views and needs of pupils/students, staff, parents, carers and local communities. It should be driven by inquisitive, independent minds and through conversations focused on the key strategic issues which are conducted with humility, good judgement, resilience and determination.” 
Source: Governance Handbook, Department for Education (2017)

Trusteeship is a voluntary, unpaid role for people who have the energy and skills to make a real contribution to shaping the future of our schools. You do not need to have any specialist knowledge of education. 

Applications

Academy Ambassadors is a non-profit programme which recruits senior business leaders and professionals as volunteer non-executive directors onto the boards of multi-academy trusts. If you are interested in applying for the role please send your CV and a short expression of interest detailing which role you are applying for to academyambassadors@newschoolsnetwork.org. Please note: candidates should live within reasonable travelling distance of the trust and/or have a link with the region. For more information, please call 0207 952 8556 or visit www.academyambassadors.org.

Key dates

We strongly recommend applying as early as you can to have the best possible chance of being considered as we may change the closing date if we have received sufficient applications. Applicants should be aware of the following key dates in the recruitment process –

Deadline for applications: 19^th April 2019

Interviews:    TBC