Parent and Carer FAQs

There will be very little visible change as a result of the MAT. Your school will retain its own character and ethos. The name of the school, the staff, the school uniform, the school term dates and timings of the school day will not change as a result of the MAT. The Local Governing Committee will continue to run the school on a daily basis much as they do now and parents will continue to be represented on the Local Governing Committee. Children with special educational needs will continue to receive additional support in the way that they do now.

The MAT will provide some central administrative services, which will help your school to be more efficient and therefore allow school leaders and school funding to be more focused on teaching, learning and support for students. Being an academy and part of a MAT also means access to additional DfE funding, for example the MAT Development and Improvement Fund and the Conditions Improvement Fund (for the improvement and / or expansion of school buildings and facilities). It is anticipated that parents (and their children) will experience the additional benefits outlined in these FAQs, resulting in a positive impact on educational quality and standards.

Academies are not required to teach the National Curriculum, but they do have to teach a broad and balanced one that includes English, Mathematics, Science and Religious Education and promotes the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of students. In reality, there is very little difference between the National Curriculum and academy curriculum legal requirements. The intention is for Collaborative Learning Trust schools to continue to follow the National Curriculum.

As publicly-funded schools, academies (and Multi Academy Trusts) must have admission arrangements that clearly set out how children will be admitted, including the criteria that will be applied if there are more applications than available places. Academies, as their own admission authorities, must ensure that the practices and the criteria used to decide the allocation of school places are fair, clear and objective.

Academies are required to comply with the Admissions and Admission Appeals Codes of Practice as if they were maintained schools. They are also required to participate in Local Authority co-ordination of admissions processes and the Local Authority’s Fair Access Protocol.

All Local Authorities are required to coordinate admissions for primary (including infant and junior) and secondary schools (including 14-19 schools) in their area. All schools, whether local authority schools or academies, must participate in the scheme. Academies can choose to withdraw from the scheme for “in-year” admissions but must still abide by the Admissions Code.