A Message from Hall Mead School Governing Body
and Corbets Tey Special School Governing Body

Hall Mead School and Corbets Tey Special School are thinking about becoming Trust Schools. The information on this webpage is to explain our ideas and proposals and to ask your views. The two schools have been working together on this but will not be merged or joined in any way. As both schools are currently community schools, a change to Trust Status would initially require a change to Foundation Status also.

Our Proposed Trust

Trust Schools are a new kind of school – a maintained foundation school supported with a charitable foundation. They are part of the local authority system, but supported by a charitable Trust which will appoint some of the governors. The governing body will continue to run the school and be responsible for its performance and Mr. London will remain as headteacher at Hall Mead as will Mr. Arthey at Corbets Tey. As Trust Schools, Hall Mead and Corbets Tey would be Foundation Schools. The trustees hold the land and assets in trust but these are still managed by the governing body.

You may be aware already that both schools already work together as members of the Upminster and Cranham Locality Group of local schools. The proposal is that both schools will be supported by a charity formed by the following partners:

• The University of East London
• West Ham United Football Club plc.
• The Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department, Queen’s Hospital
• Parents of Autistic Children Together (P.A.C.T.)
• Saint Francis Hospice
• Engayne Primary School
• Branfil Primary School
• Upminster Junior Primary School
• Oglethorpe Primary School

We already have strong links with some of these partners and are building relationships with the others. Exciting possibilities are opening up for collaboration in a number of areas

Web Links

Specialist Schools and Academies Trust

Department for Children, Schools and Families (Teachernet)

Foundation & Aided Schools National Association

University of East London

West Ham United Football Club plc

Saint Francis Hospice

Parents of Autistic Children Together (P.A.C.T.)

Engayne Primary School

Branfil Primary School

Upminster Junior Primary School

So why a do we need a Trust?

Although we could already work with these partners individually, we believe that there is so much more we can do that will improve the lives of our children and young people, their families and the staff of our schools and that will benefit our partners and the wider community. At the moment we can work with partners on a 1 to 1 basis on a limited range of activities.

Our Trust partners would be entering into a long-lasting, sustainable and stable relationship with the school. This new type of relationship will enable us all to plan developments over the long-term and will ensure continuity of direction when key staff and governors leave the schools. Our partners will be able to work jointly with each other in a much more effective way, using their pooled expertise to help us to continue our drive to keep Corbets Tey as an ever improving and outstanding school for all: students, parents, governors, staff and the wider community.

The Trust partners will be involved with us in planning for the development ideas that could raise the aspirations and broaden the horizons of the young people in our schools through their educational support experiences. The Trust will have some very significant partners who can work together to support us.

The formation by our partners of a Trust to support the schools will open up all sorts of exciting possibilities and opportunities which might otherwise not be available. The partners are excited by the prospect of working together and of developing projects, with us that would otherwise not have happened.

Becoming a Trust School commits our partners to working to secure educational benefits for all of our children and young people, our staff and governors, our parents and the wider community.

What does this mean for students?

The twin themes of the Trust would therefore be ‘Raising Aspirations, Broadening Horizons’. The Trust would work with our schools to ease transition towards independent lifelong learning and by exposing pupils to a wider range of cultural (including multi-cultural) experiences which would enable them to see the opportunities presented by the wider world. The Trust would also strive to promote successful learning, inclusion, community cohesion and to develop parental support skills amongst its school communities.

The Trust offers opportunity for the school to have stronger voice including greater potential for finance raising.

The Trust would seek to make a difference to the pupils by:

• Enriching and developing the curriculum.
Developing lifeskills opportunities through real world experience.
• Developing opportunities for our children and young people to work with mainstream pupils
• Enriching and developing our Creative Arts work.
• Enriching opportunities for work related and life theme learning.
• Widening opportunities for Corbets Tey pupils to work with other institutions and thereby developing their own skills and aptitudes.
• Encouraging pupils to be safer and healthier.
• Promoting equality and diversity.
• Promoting expertise in special educational needs in our Locality Group.
• Developing parenting skills.
• Developing and sharing expertise in the field of autism.
• Broadening the scope and range of pupils’ cultural experiences.
• Enhancing our opportunity to promote real school development.
• Facilitating other partnerships/projects to the mutual benefit of all Trust Partners.
• Have facilitated support for finance raising.

What does this mean for parents?

As a Foundation School, admissions will be in line with the national guidelines for special schools. We will continue to work closely in partnership with the Local Authority on admissions. It is also worth noting that the Local Authority has a formal, supportive policy on Trust status as an important tenet of diversity.

It is proposed that the Trust should appoint a minority of governors at both schools. There will continue to be the same number of parent governors as well as staff, Local Authority and community governors.

What does this mean for staff?

The governing bodies, not the Trust, will continue to run the schools and to be responsible and accountable for their performance. The school budgets will continue to be delegated by the London Borough of Havering to the governing bodies. The existing rights of teachers will be fully protected if the schools acquire a Trust. We will continue to be bound by the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document. Teachers will be employed by their school’s governing body instead of the Local Authority. Current terms and conditions of Service will be safeguarded and we will continue to recognise the same Teachers’ Professional Associations. Again, it is worth noting that the Local Authority has a formal, supportive policy on Trust status as an important tenet of diversity.

The Trust will not be the employer.

The schools will be able to set the terms and conditions of work for support staff. However, terms and conditions for existing staff will be safeguarded. Support staff unions will continue to be recognized.

Myth busting

• Trust school are not Academies
• Trust schools will not be able to overturn the admissions code or national curriculum
• Trust schools will not be able to vary the terms and conditions of service of teachers as set out in the national Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document
• Trust schools will not be able to vary the terms and conditions of support staff already employed at the school
• Trusts are not a means for inappropriate organisations to run schools
• Trusts are not about privatising state schools by the back door
• Trusts will not be able to sell off school assets for inappropriate purposes

Timeline

Key Dates:

23.11.09 – 18.12.09; Phase 1 consultation
Feb. 2010; Governors decide whether to proceed to phase 2 formal consultation
22.02.10 – 19.03.10; Phase 2 formal consultation
March 2010; Governors decide whether to dissolve governing body, change status and acquire a trust
19th April to 16th May - Statutory notice published and period for representations
24th May - Governors' resolution
7th June - Acquisition of trust status

Click Here for FAQs relating to Governance and Legalities of Trust Status

Click Here for PowerPoint Presentation relating to the Proposed Trust

Click Here for Mindmap of the New Trust Partnerships