The final Strategy meeting of 2023-24 took place at OWN Trust on 9th July and was attended by our usual members plus the new CEO Designate, Lorraine Greco. This was seen as part of the handover as Stuart Mansell (the current CEO) approaches retirement. As you can imagine, there was a great deal to discuss about how the Trust works at a governance level and what plans are in place for the upcoming transition.

In October, there will be a Trust development session for Trustees and Governors, arranged by Jan Neish (Governance & Compliance Manager). Plans are in place for a keynote delivery from a member of the ‘Walkthrus’ organisation, who provides a toolkit of ‘flexible, evidenced and engaging’ techniques for supporting the development of quality teaching and learning. The focus of the Trust for the coming year is ‘Our Purpose’, which primarily involves teaching and learning, assessment, curriculum, and pupil outcomes. This will then be returned to at the second session in spring.

Jan continued to lead on self-evaluation of governance and leadership by Local Governance Committees and Trustees. A key area for work is around recruitment for the roles of governor and Trustee. Both roles are crucial but very difficult to recruit for due to the commitment involved and the voluntary nature of the roles. Mary Foreman (Chair of Trustees) and Sally Williams (Vice-Chair) both contributed to discussions about how the roles were currently working and what areas for development are needed.

Stuart Mansell (current CEO) and Lorraine, then outlined the comprehensive handover that was already underway. Lorraine has been visiting the Trust and has been in regular contact with both Stuart and senior school leaders as well as Trustees, culminating in two full weeks based in the Trust at the end of the term. It is rare for such an involved handover to take place, but this shows both the degree of handover that is needed for such an important role, and also the commitment that Trustees have to ensure it happens as smoothly as possible.