High quality trusts: exploring government ambition | National Governance Association

For governing boards, decisions about the future of their organisation are the most momentous they can take – to academise or not; to grow or not; to merge or not. These decisions change the very nature of a school or trust, transforming it, often irreversibly. We are always impressed by the sincerity with which boards approach these conversations, drawing on their deeply embedded understanding of their school, trust and communities to decide what is in the best interests of the young people they serve.

The relevance of these conversations has once again risen following last month’s white paper. The government set out its ambition for every school to join or form a high-quality trust, a potentially revolutionary change for the remaining maintained schools and SATs in the system. At the same time, the white paper also set out a vision for what a high-quality trust looks like: quality leadership and governance accompanied by both scale and geographical coherence. Those last two expectations – scale and coherence – are likely to shape the decision-making of existing MATs on future growth.

Our perspective

Conversations around structures have always been a nuanced one for NGA, as we are proud to represent those governing and supporting governance in both the maintained and trust sectors. In our engagement with boards across the country, we see every day that outstanding governance is not reserved to a particular school type. Our position is that no structure is a silver bullet on its own, with schools of all types requiring effective governance, executive leadership, resourcing and more to succeed.

At the same time, NGA has also long advocated for the power of deep collaboration between schools, of which the trust model has been the dominant example. Whether through economies of scale, skilled and specialist central teams, or innovative staff development and wider knowledge sharing, collaboration can expand the potential of schools to change lives. The white paper is right to put an emphasis on collaboration throughout and, although the trust model is not the only way schools can collaborate, we appreciate why the Department has focused on the most scaled and explored version of it.

Much has also been written about the inefficiencies of the “mixed economy” system – maintained and trust models running side by side. It adds complexity, risks duplication, works against collaboration and makes it harder to achieve the benefits of scale. While the concept of a system focused on a single structure is therefore appealing to many, our conversations suggest that maintained schools need convincing that what might work for the system as a whole will also work for their pupils. The removal of some of the most controversial parts of the trust system by the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill – such as around the national curriculum, teacher pay and conditions, qualified teacher status and accountability – alongside the white paper’s insistence that trusts have a geographical coherence, may help to shift perceptions of MATs, and are changes we support.

Changing behaviours?

The Department’s ambition on cross-system structural alignment has not been accompanied by a deadline or obvious “carrots and sticks” to persuade SATs and maintained schools into MATs. The jury is therefore out on whether the white paper’s preferences will have a significant impact on structural change on the ground. We have a recent case study in the form of the 2022 white paper, which set out a similar ambition. While our surveys did identify an increase in the trusts considering growth and the maintained schools considering academisation following that white paper, the rate of conversions remained fairly sluggish.

However, 2026 is not 2022, and there are reasons to believe that behaviours might be different this time. The pressures “pushing” maintained schools into structural change have only increased since then – funding pressures have grown in the context of falling pupil rolls while the capacity of many local authority education teams has continued to erode. For many maintained schools, academisation might be a last resort to achieve financial sustainability and access stronger external support.

At the same time, the white paper’s wider messaging on collaboration provides more pathways into MATs, such as the reintroduction of the idea of local authority trusts and the local SEND groups at the heart of the SEND reforms. The new local SEND groups could be particularly influential by instigating collaboration on aspects of resourcing, staffing and delivery. Meanwhile, the focus on inclusion within new accountability frameworks could further push standalone schools towards group-based integration. At the very least, the white paper will be causing trusts and standalone schools to reconsider their growth and conversion timelines, even if the outcomes of those conversations remain uncertain.

We’re here to help

And that’s where NGA can help. Knowing the significance and complexity of decisions around growth and structural change, we have been helping boards through these journeys for many years.

For maintained schools and SATs, we have guidance on Joining a MAT.

If you would like more bespoke support, then our expert consultants are available to support you in researching and selecting a MAT.

For those already in MATs, we have guidance on developing a MAT growth strategy, and specific support for the complex merger process, written in partnership with our legal partners Browne Jacobson.

Our expert consultants are also available to provide bespoke support on preparing your trust for growth and then supporting through the merger process.

Choices about the structural future of your school or trust can be difficult, controversial and perhaps the most significant you can make as a governor or trustee. The stakes may be high but that's precisely why these conversations matter and why boards shouldn't shy away from having them. Whatever conclusion you reach, young people are best served by boards that have asked hard questions rather than deferred them. We're here to help you do exactly that.

Michael Barton

Head of Policy and Impact

Michael spearheads NGA's policy work, through which we represent our members; champion governance; and advocate for change in line with our policy positions. This includes engagement with external partners such as government, parliamentarians, trade unions and other colleagues.