Opportunities and Expectations
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Opportunities and Expectations

If you are considering joining The Sycamore Church of England Trust there are several opportunities and expectations for you to consider alongside the many benefits you can expect when joining our Trust. 

The future is full of exciting opportunities for the Sycamore Church of England Trust. We are keen to talk to school leaders who share our vision.

We are seeking governors who strive to generate a culture of excellence by being innovative and collaborative; schools that are or want to be high performing organisations – relentless in providing the very best education and nurturing environments for their pupils. 

Your school is unique and as one of our trust schools, you will retain this distinctive identity.

Education is at a crossroads. Joining us could provide you with security, by helping shape a brighter and promising future for your school, families and local community. We provide a respectful and professional team that can work with you to inspire greatness. 

If you feel your philosophy and values are in line with ours, then let’s continue the conversation. Together we can embark on a unique and exciting journey. 

To discuss this information and the opportunities in more detail, please contact us.

Education

Opportunities

  • Sharing research informed best practice across our family of schools
  • Openness about strengths and weaknesses in a supportive and challenging environment
  • Access to specialist colleagues shared across the trust including trust-wide support for the curriculum, assessment and leadership 
  • Utilising cutting-edge technology to transform learning

Expectations

  • Willingness to be truly collaborative
  • Openness and honesty in all areas
  • Thinking about the educational provision across the trust and not just in one institution
  • Sharing of data

Finance

Opportunities

  • Sharing research informed best practice across our family of schools
  • Openness about strengths and weaknesses in a supportive and challenging environment
  • Access to specialist colleagues shared across the trust including trust-wide support for the curriculum, assessment and leadership 
  • Utilising cutting-edge technology to transform learning

Expectations

  • Willingness to be truly collaborative
  • Openness and honesty in all areas
  • Thinking about the educational provision across the trust and not just in one institution
  • Sharing of data

Governance

Opportunities

  • A framework for ensuring efficient use of time and an annual calendar of requirements to support compliance
  • Governor training by experienced facilitators in all areas, including leadership of local academy committee (LAC)
  • Regular reports on health and safety and premises management
  • Data for the LAC in relation to pupil progress and monitoring to ensure efficiency.

Expectations

  • The LAC is fit for purpose and has undertaken self-evaluation and a skills audit
  • The LAC will accept guidance and advice to ensure they are compliant with our scheme of delegation and legal requirements.

Career Advancement

Opportunities

  • Supporting all staff on a journey to becoming highly effective and reflective practitioners
  • Supporting staff development by providing trust-wide opportunities to work in different contexts
  • Recognition and nurturing of talents and aspirations
  • Providing opportunities for all staff to lead or engage with improvement teams
  • Engagement with a range of CPD providers
  • Access to a suite of NPQ leadership training opportunities
  • SLE deployment, school-to-school support, research and development
  • Trust-wide conferences and exposure to national events and leading educators

Expectations

  • All leaders are flexible about working across the trust
  • Common training opportunities across the trust

Operations

Opportunities

  • Trust-wide policies in all key areas
  • Trust-wide health and safety arrangements and support
  • Access to specialist and general facilities/site management

Expectations

  • A willingness to join trust contracts to support facilities and site management
  • A willingness for joint trust health and safety arrangements and support
  • A willingness to adopt common HR and facility policies

Benefits: A Collaborative Approach to School Improvement

At the heart of Sycamore Trust is a commitment to providing the best possible support and challenge to our academies to enable them to provide ever-higher standards of education to their pupils. To achieve this, we offer the following:

High Quality CPD

  • Leadership Training organised through the MAT;
  • Access to ICT support through our strategic partners;
  • Access to support from Manchester Diocese to develop RE and SMSC;

Educational Support

  • NLE, LLE & SLE support available from within the Trust;
  • SENCo support;
  • Data support;

SIAMS Support

  • Trained SIAMS leaders within the Trust;
  • RE specialist support within the Trust.
  • Keeping RE and Collective Worship at the fore for Church of England schools
  • Support from Manchester Diocese to develop RE and SMSC