Considering the benefits of a Multi Academy Trust (MAT)? Why join The Pegasus Academy Trust?

As of September 2021 The Pegasus Academy Trust (PAT) is open to expressions of interest from schools in SE London and areas nearby who are considering joining a MAT. We are the longest established Primary MAT in our part of London, having been formed in April 2010, and would like to gradually expand from our current six schools to a maximum of ten. We are clear about the enduring benefits of working alongside like–minded schools and any visitor to any of our schools will quickly see that although each school is unique they are all vibrant places to teach and learn. Many of our staff have been with PAT from the very start and Governors or Headteachers may be interested to read below why so many of us have stayed.

The sections below explain why you might consider joining the Pegasus family of schools.

Follow this link if you would like to read more about the values of the Pegasus Academy Trust

Read about our ethos and values

1. Being part of an organisation with high capacity gives staff the chance to focus on their core purpose

Schools who have joined tell us that prior to joining Pegasus there simply weren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. Senior leaders were overloaded, Governors were unsure as to where to turn as local authority officers were slow to respond and had no ability to help and teachers were stuck in a culture of long hours in an attempt to keep up with workload. We have specialised and experienced teams that can free individuals to go about making their school, governing body or individual class the very best that they can be. As a result of this Pegasus schools have great staff morale with excellent practitioners who love working with children – inspiring us all to be better.

2. Established teams and systems that you can rely on

At every level of our Trust we have experienced, forward thinking educators and support teams. These teams are all ‘in house’ and cannot be purchased commercially. Pegasus schools benefit from:

A small executive team with over 50 years knowledge of Primary Education in a variety of settings;
In house payroll and HR;
In house EWO services;
An in house facilities team backed up by long standing, responsive contractors who deliver great value for money. We budget realistically for capital expenditure and problems are resolved quickly and before they have an impact on learning;
A history of bidding successfully for a range of grants;
In house governance advice and clerking;
Network Managers and ICT support – excellent connectivity between our schools with all systems secured and backed up;
Classroom to classroom telephone dialling so that you can contact colleagues within the Trust easily;
In house extended school leaders delivering wraparound care and extra curricular activities across our schools;
An accessible organisation. Our Executive Principals attend each of our schools each week;

3. A bespoke curriculum and support for developing great teachers

‘In house’ non class based staff development team – expert teachers working alongside teachers to deliver top quality planning and lessons that are fun and engaging;
One of only two organisations in Croydon accredited to deliver our own ‘in house’ training for ECT1 & ECT2 teachers;
A supportive coaching model allowing established teachers to develop and learn from other experienced practitioners across the Trust;
Innovative curriculum design and the resources and staff capacity to keep on innovating;
The chance to work alongside those from other schools in the Trust to develop the curriculum and lead a subject;
Budgeting for continued investment in IT and materials that benefit children every day;
Support for the broader curriculum through expertise in areas like Forest Schools and Music teaching;

4. Assurance and compliance

Strong systems for child protection and safeguarding and experienced colleagues to consult;
Back office teams ready to support you in completing all statutory duties, including annual accounts, on time;
An experienced and committed Board of Directors;
Ofsted expertise;
Trust wide policies updated and reviewed by our Senior Leadership team on an ongoing basis and website compliance regularly reviewed. We do things once, not multiple times;
In site facilities team to support with health and safety concerns and any resulting works in a timely manner;

5. Maintain your school’s individual character whilst benefitting from the efficient system structures of our Trust

Transition of new schools to the Trust takes place over achieveable timescales; no ‘big bang’;
It is our experience that schools joining the Trust always have practice that they are very committed to and have invested in. We have flexibility to assimilate individual priorities of schools although we do seek gradual convergence over time;
We do not ‘top slice’ the funding of schools within our Trust as many other MATs do;