The decision follows discussions at a dinner hosted by Anthony Collins Solicitors where delegates received presentations from Frank Green, National Schools Commissioner, and Pank Patel, West Midlands Regional Schools Commissioner.
The event was attended by over 60 guests including the chief executive officers of a number of leading local multi-academy trusts and the Head of Education and Portfolio Holder for Children and Young People in Birmingham.
Simon Ramshaw, a partner at Anthony Collins Solicitors, said: “Three themes emerged from our dinner event at Hotel du Vin.
“We need to re-imagine what we mean by ‘school’ and mentally compare this to the transition from Stephenson’s Rocket to The Flying Scotsman, the bullet train and the jumbo jet.
“The economic situation can be turned to our advantage. Innovation thrives when times are tight.
“And the academy system must develop to become self-serving. Academies and MATs need to work together to find solutions to challenges as they emerge, rather than wait for the regulators to address them.”
He said the event heard that 40 per cent of children and 40 per cent of teaching staff are now in academies, so although the number of academies may seem small, the proportion of those working in and being educated by academies is larger than might be thought.
“The event was extremely successful and it was very helpful to hear the views of Frank Green and Pank Patel.
“We want to harness the energy generated at this event and the aim is now to set up a Midlands Forum for MATs.
“We hope that academies and MATs will see this as a positive initiative and drive it forward. Anthony Collins Solicitors will provide support and encouragement in any way we can.”
He added that other themes to come out of the evening included the idea of an annual awards dinner that would foster and support best practice and help the development of initiatives in the Midlands region.
The Lifeline Project was a well-regarded charity. Failure to carry out the targets within the contracts led the charity into insolvency and resulted in a personal, 7-year disqualification order.
On 23 July, trainees from Anthony Collins Solicitors will host an ‘experience day’, which will involve various activities and presentations, with lawyers and non-lawyers from across the firm.
The Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) has launched a new scheme specifically for charities and not-for-profit organisations who want to advise EU citizens on UK settlement.
In the second part of our series on contract management pitfalls, we look at the risks and opportunities presented by payment mechanisms in construction contracts.
Under most construction contracts, the contractor takes on the ground conditions risk. However, a recent case has demonstrated that the risk can fall on the employer.
The UK Government has been consulting on how it should promote social value in its procurements. Here is our response that we submitted to the consultation...
The Tenant Fees Act 2019 came into force on 1 June 2019.
A recent case in the Court of Appeal will no doubt bring a sigh of relief for employers, but a corresponding sigh of disappointment may be uttered for equality and gender balance in the workplace.
This briefing assists response to the consultation paper by outlining the consultation questions, providing some background information and prompting some thoughts and potential answers.
A report published on 29 May by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has found that since 2009-10, local government spending on services has fallen on average by 21% in real terms.
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