Governance at AET

Academies Enterprise Trust is a charitable company limited by guarantee. Its charitable objectives are set out in its Articles of Association. For financial statements and funding agreements, visit the Finance page. For policies, visit the Policies and Statutory Information page.

Overview of Governance at AET

Overarching legal responsibility and accountability for the Trust and its academies lies with the Board of Trustees. The Trustees set and monitor strategic objectives, as well as compliance with charity and company law and the Trust's funding agreement.

Holistic model of governance

Day-to-day responsibilities are delegated by the Trustees through a Scheme of Delegation to the Leadership Team, regional leaders and Academy Councils. This allows for strategic Board decision making, while also ensuring focused and effective executive and regional leadership and local engagement and input from stakeholders. Each tier of governance contributes to helping establish each academy’s values and ethos, monitoring educational and financial performance and linking them with their communities.

Academy Councils

At the local level, Academy Councils will serve as the single local advisory body squarely focused on providing insight into the experiences of pupils, parents, staff and the wider community. Comprised of parents, community members, staff, local authority representatives, school leaders and a Trust link member, they will serve as a source of validation and (where necessary) modification of the Trust's understanding of the school's success in meeting the needs of its pupils and community. They will also serve as ambassadors of the school and the Trust to the parents and community.

The remit of the Academy Councils is set out in the Terms of Reference. Because many governance duties are performed by the Trust’s regional leadership and professional support services, Academy Council members will not be ‘governors’ in the traditional sense. While they will be informed of and consulted on matters of educational performance, policy and compliance, they will not be relied upon for scrutiny of those areas. Instead, they will have the freedom to focus on providing the local feedback, assurance and connection that cannot be obtained in any other way:

  • whether the Trust’s understanding of the school matches their ‘lived experience’;

  • feedback on the school’s priorities, vision, ethos and strategic direction;

  • championing of the school’s achievements;

  • developing local links to the community for learning, development and employment;

  • communication of messages back to Trust-level management & governance; and

  • most importantly, whether pupils, parents and staff feel safe and happy.

For specific Academy Council membership information, please visit the governance page of your school's website.