Non-executive Director

About the trust

The Gateway Learning Community Trust spans from Nursery to secondary across the Essex area. The trust has a total budget of £16.00m, with 5 schools, 427 staff members and 2,873 pupils. Four of the schools rate Good overall, with Herringham Primary Academy achieving Requires Improvement.

They deal with a range of needs including, 235 of free school meal pupils, c.500 special needs students and c.500 with English as a second language students. They provide personal support, including extra-lessons where necessary, for children with Special Educational Needs or those who are not progressing as they should.

The GLC Gateway Academy was the first academy in Essex and was the catalyst for the creation of one of the first locality based multi academy trusts in the UK. The trust is working to ensure a sustainable future in which each of its academies is judged to be at least Good by Ofsted, whilst also building external relationships with other MATs and organisations.

The trusts key mission is to develop confident, aspirational, resilient, high-achieving, healthy, caring and fulfilled members of society.  This includes the development of productive relationships to prepare children for learning and life.

Role summary

Number of positions advertised:

1

Role 1– Trustee/Non-Executive Director

Trustees – or non-executive directors - are both charity trustees and company directors of the academy trust. The core functions of their role are: ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction; holding executive leaders to account for the educational and financial performance of a charitable company funded by the public purse.

The board of trustees manages the business of the academy trust and may exercise all the powers of the trust in compliance with its charitable objects, company and charity law.

In the interests of safeguarding, all trustee appointments would be subject to an enhanced disclosure and barring service check.

Person specification

Every trustee is expected to abide by the trust’s code of conduct and the seven principles of public life set out by Lord Nolan: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.

The Competency Framework for Governance (DfE) 2017 details the knowledge, skills and behaviours required for effective governance: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/583733/Competency_framework_for_governance_.pdf

The strategic expertise required for this role includes:

Essential (due to multiple roles, candidates may be accepted who possess one or more of the skills below)

• HR
• Legal/Compliance

Desirable

• Risk
• Succession Planning

The trust are hoping to recruit a director who shares their values and ethos and who is committed to working to improve the wider community through the education of children. The ideal candidate will posess good working knowledge of HR and associated legal compliance.

Time commitment

6-8 hours per month