January is finally over; the frost and snow seem to have abated (for now!); and weather watchers are forecasting the warmest year on record. However 2019 has started for you, it’s certainly been an eventful 5 weeks across our MAT.

As previously shared with you in earlier briefings, we’ve seen some staffing changes to the central Trust team recently which have led to a flurry of new appointments. I’m really pleased to welcome Simon Griffiths and Andy Hiles, who will be our new Finance & Compliance Officers. Simon and Andy will be joining us alongside Gaynor Bailey who has taken on a new role as our Purchase to Pay Officer. All 3 colleagues will be joining us mid-to-late February and will bring additional capacity to the central finance team, led by the Chief Finance Officer Catherine Sands.

Frustratingly the conversion date for Crags has been moved back another month until April 2019. As a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) funded school, there are a lot of legal hurdles that must be cleared as part of the academisation process and, unfortunately, when we clear what we believe is the final one we then come across a few more. I’ll keep you updated on progress, though we may encounter further delay before Crags officially join the MAT. Fingers crossed for April!

I am sorry to share that we’ve recently lost pupil at Hilltop school, who sadly passed away in late January after a short illness. At this time the family have asked for privacy so I won’t go into any more details, though all of our thoughts and prayers go out to them at this incredibly challenging time.

On a daily basis I see so many of our staff being relentless in their efforts to make the education offer in our region be the best it can be, and I’m really pleased that our new 19-25 partnership with Landmarks College has taken a big step forward with the securing of Town Centre premises. We’re really excited about how this new offer can be shaped over the coming years to provide a genuinely progressive next step for our leavers and it’s wonderful we’ll have more choice and diversity for families from this September.

I am really grateful that central Trust staff were invited into Kelford on 6th Feb to share lunch with our children as the school celebrated Chinese New Year. Those who attended loved it. Whilst I couldn’t be there, I did get to photo-bomb the official opening of the new classrooms at Abbey on 31st January. The feedback from Luci that I looked like a grinning, cardboard cut out is—sadly—the best compliment I’ve had all year. On that sad note, I’ll sign off...

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