Shaw Education Trust (SET) is a large multi-academy trust of 30 academies across the Midlands and Northwest of England. SET delivers outstanding education provision to over 11,000 children and young people aged 2 to 25. Its highly inclusive provision caters for all phases, all sectors and all communities, from mainstream to special schools, primary to further education, and into adulthood.

Grounded in the belief that all children should have the opportunity to be exceptional, whatever their starting point, SET pledges an unswerving commitment to improve, accelerate and enable ambitious life goals for all young people in its academies. The Trust is often invited to take on underperforming schools and is proud of its success in transforming such schools into thriving communities for pupils, teachers and parents.

The Trust does not prescribe a curriculum to its academies; instead, it supports each academy in offering a curriculum that deepens knowledge, develops skills and fires the curiosity of its students. Each academy also offers a range of support that addresses life after school, develops students’ independence, and equips them for their individual futures. During the pandemic, the Trust was able to support students who would otherwise have fallen behind, due to the commitment of its dedicated teachers and the state-of-the-art technology available to teachers and students alike.

Senior leaders at each Academy have the support of a central core team which provides high-quality resources to staff to ensure they are continually developing their good practice. This dedication to fantastic support and training is evidenced in the talented teachers who are committed to improving outcomes for all pupils. Collaboration within and between the academies is strongly encouraged to create a community of professionals with a wide range of valuable experience and specialist knowledge to share.

Going forward, the Trust hopes to continue to consolidate and grow its work across the academy sector, with the possibility of taking on more schools and reaching more disadvantaged communities.

The Board of Trustees holds the CEO, executive team and academy leaders to account to successfully deliver against the Trust’s mission and strategic plan. They ensure an excellent education and level of safeguarding for students across the academies, a clear strategic direction, and the setting and monitoring of performance benchmarks. Trustees also have overall responsibility for ensuring that Shaw Education Trust complies with all legal and regulatory requirements, that resources are managed prudently, and that governance is of the highest possible standard.

Trustees actively participate in Board discussions, providing robust challenge in a constructive manner, and work well with other Board members and the leadership team. They understand the strategic nature of the Board’s role and how this differs from the role of executive leaders.

It is likely that candidates will have had some senior experience as either executive or non- executive in a large organisation, although first time Non-Executives / Trustees are welcome to apply. The Trust operates in a highly regulated environment in which good governance is paramount, and candidates should demonstrate a willingness to spend the requisite amount of time understanding these requirements.

All candidates should show integrity, honesty and compassion, and be great team players who can contribute to the Board but excel individually. They should demonstrate a genuine enthusiasm and passion for the mission and values of Shaw Education Trust, and the importance of providing an outstanding education to all students, no matter their background, ability, or starting point. Candidates may be based anywhere in the UK; although an affinity or familiarity with the locations in which the Trust operates would be an advantage but is not essential. It will however be necessary to attend meetings face to face, on three or four occasions annually. 

Finance Trustee

SET is a £100+ million turnover organisation and as such requires the highest level of financial management. Therefore, SET seeks a new, dynamic Trustee who brings senior- level accountancy and/or finance experience.

The successful candidate is likely to be a qualified accountant and will bring a strong background in accountancy or financial management gained through current or recent senior roles in either the accountancy profession, large commercial organisations or the public sector. Board level experience is desirable, as is experience of risk management, statutory reporting, financial planning and analysis.

They will also act as mentor and support to the CFO and in house finance team and will be a member of the Finance and Audit and Risk committees.

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Education Trustee

Shaw Education Trust seeks a new, dynamic Trustee who brings senior-level experience of mainstream education in either primary or secondary sectors.

The successful candidate will bring in-depth senior leadership experience as an educationalist. This experience could have been gained as a school leader, MAT executive, or within the regulatory / inspectorate environment.

The right candidate will be up to date on current trends, the regulatory framework and political issues affecting education nationally and be able to advise the Board on related strategic matters. They will be able to demonstrate empathy with SET’s philosophy that all children, regardless of background and starting point, deserve an education tailored to their needs and designed to allow them to grow and fulfil their potential.

They will also act as a support and mentor to the in-house education team and will be a member of the Education and Standards committee.

These roles are unremunerated, but reasonable, pre-agreed travel expenses will be reimbursed. There are 6 Board meetings held in person in the Midlands or Northwest and each member of the Board will to be a member of at least one sub-committee, (these meetings are currently held remotely). The total time commitment is expected to be approximately 8-10 days per year. 

There will be additional induction and training commitments in the first year of term. The appointment is for an initial four-year term, which can be renewed at the discretion of the Board.

Board Meetings are from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm in February, April, July, September, December and an Annual General Meeting in January.

Finance and Audit Committee meetings take place remotely the week before the Board meetings. Although there are nominated members of the finance and audit committees, everybody is invited to attend. 

Education and Standards committee meetings take place just before Board meetings and all Trustees attend. 

SET is open to candidates based anywhere in the UK however candidates must be able to attend in person board meetings which are currently held in the Midlands or North West of England.

SET welcomes applications from everyone regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, belief or disability. As those from an ethnic minority background are currently under-represented on the Board, applications from those candidates would be particularly encouraged. All appointments will be made on merit, following a fair and transparent process. In line with the Equality Act 2010, however, the organisation may employ positive action where candidates from underrepresented groups can demonstrate their ability to perform the role equally well.