Trustee Job Description 

Job Title: Trustee

Location:

• Trust Board meetings to be held in a LEO Academy. 

• Site visits to local LEO Academies as necessary.

• Site visit to LEO Academy Trust registered office as necessary.

Hours: 

• Up to six Trust Board meetings a year.

• Remote involvement via email/telephone.

• Regular review of reports and documentation.

Salary Range: Voluntary

Term of Office: Four years

Job Purpose: The Trustees oversee the management and administration of the Trust and the Academies run by the Trust.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Governance

The corporate management and trustee responsibility for the Trust is vested in the Trustees, who will also be the company Trustees registered with Companies House. The Trustees are personally responsible for the actions of the Trust and the Academies and are accountable to the Members of the Trust, the Secretary of State for Education and the wider community for the quality of the education received by all pupils of the Academies and the expenditure of public money.

The Trustees are required as trustees and pursuant to the Funding Agreements to have systems in place through which they can assure themselves of the quality, safety and good practice of the affairs of the Trust.

Specific responsibilities of the Trust Board and Trustees

The role of the Trust Board and the Trustees collectively is to:

• determine the strategic vision and overarching strategic plan of the Trust;

• provide strategic leadership and governance;

• develop effective links within the Academy’s community, communicating openly and frequently as appropriate and ensuring that the Academies meet their responsibilities to the community and serve the community’s needs in relation to the safeguarding and education of its pupils;

• develop and decide strategic and statutory policies;

• provide challenge and support to senior leaders including the CEO;

• facilitate collaboration between the Academies to actively seek opportunities for the Academies to work together either with the aim of improving economic efficiencies within the Trust or identifying and implementing best practice across all Academies;

• encourage and oversee shared services and resources;

• oversee the implementation of Academy action plans focusing on Academy improvement;

• set and monitor performance benchmarks;

• determine curriculum priorities;

• set the overall Trust budget and approve of Academy budgets;

• monitor expenditure in accordance with appropriate authorisations;

• develop and implement a risk management strategy;

• ensure the Trust and the Academies comply with their legal obligations;

• determine the Trust’s reserves/contingency policy;

• ensure appropriate insurance or risk cover is put in place;

• undertake recruitment and performance management of the Executive Team;

• ensure staff training programmes and opportunities for professional development;

• support the development and building of leadership and governance capacity at Academy level;

• approve of site and asset management strategies;

• oversee any significant capital expenditure and building projects;

• approve of all funding applications;

Core Competencies

The following core competencies and skills expected of the Trustees are that they will:

• work as a team;

• attend meetings and be prepared to contribute to discussions and commit to agreed actions;

• be respectful of the views of others and to be open to new ideas and thoughts;

• treat all confidential information confidentially;

• act with integrity, avoiding any personal conflicts of interest and complying with the Trust’s Conflict of Interest policy;

• develop a deep understanding of the vision and ethos of the Trust and its Academies and the roles played by all individuals in fulfilment of the Trust’s mission;

• understand the policies and procedures of the Trust and how these flow down to the Academies;

• support the Trust in public and act as an ambassador of the Trust and the Academies;

• commit to training and skills development;

• be ready to ask questions;

• be focused on problem solving and be ready to learn from past experiences;

• adhere to the Nolan Principles in their conduct;

• Evidence the values of LEO Academy Trust in communications and actions

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Personal qualities and values – to have:

• the desire to create positive change for children;

• commitment to the aims and objectives of LEO Academy Trust;

• willingness to devote time and effort;

• ability to work effectively as a team while contributing an independent perspective;

• ability to build productive and supportive professional relationships;

• commitment to the Nolan’s seven principles of public life: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership;

• commitment to equal opportunities and anti-discriminatory practice;

• commitment to Safeguarding young people.

Education and training – to have:

• A record of continuous professional development;

• Education to a higher level in a professional area of expertise.

Experience of:

• Driving positive change;

• Leadership and management;

• Senior level Professional experience in relevant sectors.

Knowledge

• understand and accept legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities of trusteeship;

• understand of the use of attainment and other data to assess the progress, strengths and weaknesses of an educational environment;

• understanding of financial and workforce data.

Skills:

• An ability to think creatively and strategically ;

• Good, independent judgement;

• An ability to use financial and workforce data to inform decision-making.

Legal Requirements:

Individuals may not serve as a Trustee unless they are able to make the following declarations:

• I am not disqualified from acting as a charity trustee;

• I have not been convicted of an offence involving deception or dishonesty (or any such conviction is legally regarded as “spent”);

• I have not been involved in tax fraud or other fraudulent behaviour including misrepresentation and/or identity theft;

• I have not used a tax avoidance scheme featuring charitable reliefs or using a charity to facilitate the avoidance;

• I am not an undischarged bankrupt;

• I have not made compositions or arrangements with my creditors from which I have not been discharged;

• I have not been removed from serving as a charity trustee, or been stopped from acting in a management position within a charity;

• I have not been disqualified from serving as a company Trustee;

• I am not included in the list kept by the Secretary of State for Education under s1 of the Protection of Children Act 1999 (or equivalent) or have ever been disqualified from working with children or serving on a governing body of a school.

• I am able to provide a valid Disclosure and Barring Service Certificate under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 which does not disclose any reason why I should be unsuitable for working with children.

Trustees are required to complete the following declarations annually:

• Fit and Proper Person

• Declaration of Interests

• Code of Conduct