{"id":185429,"date":"2023-07-04T09:30:00","date_gmt":"2023-07-04T08:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/schoolsweek.co.uk\/?p=185429"},"modified":"2023-07-04T09:17:19","modified_gmt":"2023-07-04T08:17:19","slug":"plug-pulled-on-government-backed-turnaround-trust","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/schoolsweek.co.uk\/plug-pulled-on-government-backed-turnaround-trust\/","title":{"rendered":"Plug pulled on government-backed turnaround trust"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A turnaround academy trust launched by the government to take on schools nobody else wants is set to be shut down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ministers unveiled Falcon Education Academies Trust, as part of a pilot called EdMAT in 2019,<\/a> with the original remit of absorbing the most challenging primaries and secondaries in the north.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even though the trust was later given the go-ahead to branch out nationwide, it now has just four schools \u2013 spread across Stockton-on-Tees, Leeds, Birmingham and Swadlincote \u2013 on its books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schools Week can reveal it will now close in the 2023-24 academic year, after the Department for Education decided not to extend the trial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Government ‘no longer needs’ academy trust<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A DfE spokesperson said: \u201cThe EdMAT pilot has supported schools facing a variety of challenges and has delivered benefits to pupils, parents and staff and the communities those schools serve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe trust landscape has changed since the launch of the pilot, with the growth of the sector and high-quality trusts, and we no longer need a chain focused exclusively on schools requiring intervention.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Falcon accounts published in March said it was established to \u201ctake on and turn around very challenging schools\u2026 which MATs have been unwilling\u201d to run.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is usually because the establishments \u201chave significant sustainability and infrastructure issues that present too great a risk\u201d to a prospective trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The DfE-backed chain was intended to secure the long-term viability of the academies, before transferring them to \u201canother successful MAT\u201d. It was hoped this would free Falcon up to then turn around more schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Covid blamed for missed targets <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Prior to the outbreak of Covid, it was initially planned that the trust would have three academies under its wing by the end of August 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, it did not reach this mark until last April. It took on its last school \u2013 William Allitt Academy in Swadlincote \u2013 in September.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schools Week <\/em>revealed two years ago that Falcon\u2019s trustees believed its pilot status and small size might \u201cinhibit applications\u201d<\/a> to become its new chief executive, suggesting its government-backed status failed to tempt recruits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Applicant numbers for the role were \u201cdisappointing\u201d, despite an executive search as well as an advertising campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Falcon\u2019s latest accounts<\/a> \u2013 which showed it had \u201cfree reserves\u201d of \u00a31 million at the end of August \u2013 noted the delays \u201cwill impact levels of funding and lengthen the time before [it] achieves capacity\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also mentioned one of its \u201cpriorities\u201d was \u201cto ensure it is able to build capacity to support further schools\u201d this year. Another aim was to \u201ceffect a successful transfer of one [academy] out of the trust to another\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Three schools set for new academy trusts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

But the DfE confirmed it has \u201cnotified Falcon we do not wish to continue the pilot\u201d. It is \u201cworking jointly with the trust to agree what will happen to each school\u201d, before taking \u201cthe steps necessary to close\u201d it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"academy
Falcon CEO Anne-Marie Holdsworth<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Falcon stressed three of its three secondaries \u2013 Oulton Academy in Leeds, Thornaby Academy in Stockton-on-Tees and the William Allitt \u2013 are \u201cstrong enough\u201d to join another chain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, a decision \u201chas not yet been reached\u201d on its fourth site, the King Solomon International Business School in Birmingham.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anne-Marie Holdsworth, who heads Falcon, stated her team has transformed academies \u201cmany thought could never be improved, whether because of financial, building or academic issues\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe will ensure each of the three schools join new trusts that will continue their upward trajectories for the benefit of their students.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Falcon trust, set up to take on schools no-one else wanted, will now close<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":311204,"featured_media":121906,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[32,28],"post-theme":[2381],"class_list":["post-185429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-academies","tag-dfe","post-theme-academies"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t