Benefits of our MAT

Individual Academies within the Hamstead Hall Academy Trust retain their autonomy within the Governance Structure allowing for individuality in relation to the academy’s context and environment.

As a MAT we aim for our academies to benefit through improving value for money and school improvement services.

Academies within the MAT can benefit from the flexibility that the Hamstead Hall Academy Trust offers to manage the funding available. Funding to the Academies within the Hamstead Hall Academy Trust is allocated on an individual Academy basis, via a supplemental agreement between the Secretary of State and each Academy within the Trust. The Hamstead Hall Academy Trust can, to the extent that it is permitted through the Funding Agreement, combine some of the individual Academy’s budgets and use the money to fund shared services. This helps the Hamstead Hall Academy Trust to achieve economies of scale. The Hamstead Hall Academy Trust can often negotiate contracts and services that achieve much better value for money than if each academy were to negotiate these individually; and source locally wherever possible. The Hamstead Hall Academy Trust is the employer for all staff within its Academies, allowing the movement of staff across schools if this is desired. This is an attractive option that offers greater security of employment for staff in our academies with fluctuating populations and affords the capacity to provide additional support where it is required.

The Trust can provide a wide range of professional learning opportunities for all staff and has developed a leadership pathway from NQT to Middle Leadership to Senior Leadership. Staff within the Trust have been actively engaged with designing and delivering external leadership programmes such as, NPQH, NPQML, Leading change.

Opportunities for collaboration

The Hamstead Hall Academy Trust is ultimately accountable and responsible for the performance of each of its Academies.

Through the Scheme of Delegation, responsibilities are delegated to the local governing bodies of the academies within the Trust. The Trust appoints an Executive Principal to deliver the strategy of the Trust and to work with the individual Heads of the school to provide effective support as required, including access to a variety of school improvement partnerships through its links with the National College for Teaching and Leadership, Birmingham Education Partnership, Titan Partnership and the Teaching School alliances.