Impact Report 2024
Welcome
The last 12 months have been significant for the education sector. We have seen a new government, changes in organisations like Ofsted, shifts in funding and we are constantly responding to the evolving communities that we serve.
Throughout all of this, however, we have focused on one core purpose – and that is how we transform the lives of the young people that we have the responsibility to support, care for and educate.
As we hope this report shows, we have made significant progress in terms of achieving our ambitions for these children and young people. Outcomes have strengthened at almost every level. Our regulators, like Ofsted, have praised our academies as being places of sanctuary and aspiration. Staff surveys show that there is a growing sense of a united purpose.
But data, Ofsted feedback and graphs only show part of a story. At the heart of everything that we do are individuals and people. As a Trust, we are creating the structures and environments for individuals to thrive – and that is why we hope the testimonies and comments contained in this report help provide a flavour of the true impact of the work that we do.
This is not something that can be done in isolation. One the hallmarks of the last academic year is the growing sense of self that is cascading across the Trust. We are maturing as an organisation and the links that are forming and the ideas that are being sparked are driving forward our progress.
That is why it is right that we take a moment to acknowledge all the individuals who are driving our collective achievements. Our staff have been magnificent. Our trustees and
governing bodies have challenged us when needed and championed us when it is right to do so. Our parents have stood alongside us and, most importantly, our pupils and students have grasped every opportunity that has come their way.
We are achieving more as a community than has ever been achieved before –and it is important that is acknowledged and celebrated.
That being said, we know there is more that we can, and could, be doing – and that is what makes our work exciting. While we should take a moment to reflect, this report is just the full stop on one year before we move to another paragraph of nurturing potential, inspiring community and delivering excellence.
So, thank you for your support and dedication. The platform for future success has been set – and that is why we do what we do.
Warm regards,
James Higham Guy French CEO Chair of Trustees
Our Community
We are a family of schools supporting communities from across Rugby. We are proud to serve:
4 Academies
2,637 Pupils and Students
366 Staff
Our Vision
In 2023, the Trust undertook a review of the Transforming Lives Educational Trust Strategic Plan.
After achieving four years of transformation as part of the previous plan, it became evident that we were in a position of real strength, opportunity, and energy for our future as a strong schools’ trust. We worked together with stakeholders across our community to develop a strategic plan that embodied all we were ambitious to achieve.
Within our 2024-2030 Strategic Plan, we confirmed that: Our core purpose is to transform tomorrow, today.
This means that we believe in transforming the life chances of others so that they, in turn, become the transformers of the future, bringing about positive change and making a difference long into adulthood. Transforming tomorrow, today is why we do what we do.
“TLET’s
vision, values and ambitions drive everything we do in school. It is our moral imperative. If our children have not been exposed to what our amazing world has to offer, how will they be able to select what they want to do in the future?”
Fleur Edwards, Principal, Henry Hinde School
The TLET Way
To deliver our vision, the launch of the 2024-30 Strategic Plan took place at the start of the academic year.
At the core of this were three strategic ambitions that drive everything that we do, we call this ‘The TLET Way’.
Through the transformative values of courage, kindness and loyalty, together we:
Nurture Potential
We flourish in the places we create together.
Our Values
Inspire Community We champion each other to make a difference.
Deliver Excellence
We strive to achieve our best.
Our values act as our guide in the way our TLET family behaves, thinks, and acts. We:
• Have courage to show strength to do the right thing, at the right time, and for the right reason.
• Believe in the power of kindness and the difference that friendliness, consideration, and generosity of spirit makes to others.
• Show loyalty by being respectful and committed to others and to oneself.
What we are doing to:
Nurture Potential
We flourish in the places we create together.
Nurture Potential
We will know that we are nurturing potential when:
• our People Pledge is embedded across our Trust
• we are a knowledge-building organisation
• our staff development and professional growth offer is acknowledged as system-leading
• employee retention is high and vacancies are low
• we are an employer of choice
• governance is consistently highly-effectively.
Our People Pledge
Our People Pledge sets out our formal commitment to providing the very best for all colleagues across our Trust, with a focus on six key areas: recruitment and induction, training, career pathways, appraisal and pay, workload and, crucially, wellbeing.
Across the Trust, we believe all our colleagues must feel seen, heard, and prioritised, regardless of their role or position.
Within this context, we developed our Employee Wellbeing Charter. The Charter sets out our shared understanding of wellbeing and our commitment to supporting all our colleagues, promoting mental fitness as well as making sure everyone is expertly supported.
We are delighted that the Trust has now trained 28 colleagues from across the academies and central team, who have volunteered to become Wellbeing Champions and/or Mental Health First Aiders.
What wellbeing means for all of us
Our commitment to employee wellbeing is built around five pillars, which reflect how we support, develop and champion every colleague’s wellbeing across our Trust community.
Employee Wellbeing Charter
• Everyone will feel a high level of job satisfaction, they will feel trusted, respected and content whilst ensuring they remain challenged within their work to allow for personal and professional growth.
• All colleagues will have an environment that is safe and free from judgement and that provides emotional safety through the embedding of the Employee Wellbeing Charter.
We recognise that the responsibility for wellbeing and positive mental fitness is a joint responsibility shared by all.
A knowledge-building organisation
TLET’s annual all-staff conference marked the beginning of the Trust’s annual Continuing Professional Development calendar, bringing together colleagues in every role, at every level for a day of collaboration and the sharing of practice.
In order to support the Trust’s leaders, a dedicated Senior/Middle Leaders Programme was also established, offering a regular series of events and workshops focussing on providing the time and space for our leaders to develop and grow.
As a critical part of our duty to our communities, we also arranged for professional supervision and CPD for Designated and Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads, as well as providing regular safeguarding training for all staff.
“This year’s staff conference was really inspiring, it was a great opportunity to see how we all play a part in the Trust’s vision and made me think about applying this in my role.”
Staff member
“TLET has always been supportive of me - instrumental in my continued professional development and providing an environment where I have been able to grow personally and professionally.
“I adore the community ethosbeing each other’s biggest cheerleaders, celebrating success and, when things get tough, always moving forward. You need to be exposed to new levels so that you can go to new levels - that is TLET to me.”
Joanne Flaig-Gallichan, Home Support Worker
Recruitment and retention
Throughout this year, there has been a significant focus on bringing together the recruitment and retention processes across the academies into one shared Trust-wide approach.
This has included streamlining the recruitment process and developing a job description ‘library’, new recruitment packs, job templates and recruitment videos, as well as standardising the onboarding process and creating a dedicated induction programme for all new starters.
In addition, a new TLET Benefits Policy was put in place, pay increases were implemented and all contracts and terms and conditions were standardised for all colleagues.
TLET is also proud of our partnership with the University of Warwick for the provision of Initial Teacher Training (ITT).
Becoming an employer of choice
Our annual staff survey has shown that, at virtually every level, our employees are feeling increasingly valued and valuable in helping us achieve our collective ambitions.
At the core of this improvement is that there has been a 15 percentage point increase in the number of people who would recommend TLET as a good place to work in the last 12 months.
In addition:
There was an 11 percentage point increase in the percentage of staff who feel the Trust’s vision and values are clear.
59% of staff feel excited by the work that they do, which is an increase of ten percentage points on the previous year and above the national average.
The Trust sits above the national average for key indicators about workload. This includes the percentage of staff who feel they can plan their day in a way that works for them, and percentage of staff who feel that their workload is manageable.
The percentage of staff who feel part of the Trust’s community and are confident that being part of the Trust is beneficial have both increased by 12 percentage points
The Trust sits above the national average for how easy staff feel it is to get support with their mental and emotional wellbeing.
*Source: Edurio Staff Survey
Highly effective governance
Governance, for our academies and for the Trust, is robust, rigorous and proportionate, providing professional support and challenge so that leaders strive to the limit of what is possible with a sharp focus on outcomes and excellence.
Alongside Trustees, the work of local governing bodies (LGBs) has had a significant contribution towards championing each academy and raising standards. This has been recognised by Ofsted in inspections over the course of the year. Inspectors note that:
• “Governors and trust leaders provide strong strategic oversight of the school’s work. They are using the trust’s capacity effectively to help provide support and challenge to school leaders. Governors
and trust leaders have an accurate view of the school’s current position and recognise the school’s many positive steps forward and areas that need to continue to improve.” Ofsted
• “The trust and governors provide effective support and challenge to leaders and this is helping to distil, strengthen and share the vision for the school.” Ofsted
In 2024, we were pleased to hold our inaugural Governance Conference for members of our LGBs. Alongside this, we held regular Chair/Vice Chair meetings and began the delivery of our governance improvement plan.
“Being a school governor is a great way to support and contribute directly to the community. Knowing that you are having an impact on the lives of the next generation makes this role rewarding. Doing so as a member of a governing board that is part of TLET is even better.
Duncan Mills, Chair of Ashlawn School LGB
What we are doing to:
Inspire Community
We champion each other to make a difference.
Inspire Community
We will know that we are inspiring community when:
• attendance and punctuality is exceptionally high
• there are clearly defined shared personal development curriculum principles
• our wide ranging and engaging co-curricular and enrichment curriculum is enjoyed equitably across the Trust
• everyone feels welcomed and accepted
• civic responsibility is prioritised.
Attendance and punctuality
Being in school is important to achievement, wellbeing, and wider development.
Through our robust and nurturing approaches, we are proud that:
Ashlawn and Houlton both secured attendance rates that were higher than the national average for 2023/24
National
The attendance rate at Henry Hinde Junior School improved by nearly one percentage point between the 2022/23 academic year and the following school year.
Improved 1%
Shared personal development curriculum principles
We
have the joy of working with the next generation, and the privilege of helping to shape
the way they grow and mature into adulthood.
Through our curriculum offer, our pupils and students have some remarkable achievements. For example:
• Over 200 pupils represented Houlton School in the National Junior Maths Challenge and Intermediate Maths Challenge
• 27 Year 7 pupils from Houlton School graduated from the University of Warwick’s Brilliant Scholars Programme
• Six Year 13 students from Ashlawn School won Silver, Highly Commended and Commended Awards at the British Biology Olympiad
TLET’s Got Talent
Students from all our academies joined together for the inaugural TLET’s Got Talent competition – where young people from across TLET were able to showcase their impressive skills and talents with everything from dance performances to drum playing to balloon art.
James Higham, CEO, said: “This was such an impressive night for so many reasons. The pupils shone, not only for their talents but also how they approached the evening with a real sense of professionalism and support for one another. It was also fantastic that so many families came to watch the event. One of the things I have loved the most about our talent evening is it came from a conversation between staff and students. It was an idea that came from our community, and was put on for our community. That is exactly what I think makes this Trust so special.”
Wide ranging and engaging co-curricular and enrichment curriculum
We believe it is incredibly important to provide a wide ranging and engaging co-curricular and enrichment curriculum for our pupils.
During the last academic year, our pupils and students have benefited from activities including whole school enrichment opportunities, sports sessions, theatre productions, careers events and interviews, as well as a host of co-curricular clubs and community events that have enriched learning and opened up new interests.
Key Stages 1 and 2
100% of pupils attended at least one trip or visit in the last academic year
45% attended at least one extra-curricular activity
Key Stages 3 to 5
65% of pupils and students attended at least one trip or visit
57% attended at least one extra-curricular activity
Aspirations
Museum trips
Cooking with professional chefs
Employer workshops and careers events
Exploring the outdoors
Residentials to France, Germany, Spain and destinations across the UK
Immersive theme days
Marking Remembrance
Celebrating our heritage and culture
Martial arts workshops
National and local competitions
Girls into Football sessions
STEM days
Duke of Edinburgh’s Award
UK Parliament Week
Everyone feels welcomed and accepted
Over the course of the last 12 months, we have done a huge amount to increase a sense of belonging across our academies.
Case Study: Ashlawn School
Feedback was more positive against almost every measure for the parent, staff and student surveys when comparing the 2023 results with the 2024 results. In addition, Ashlawn’s outcomes now nearly all meet or exceed national benchmarks and averages. Just as an example:
Students
• 25% more students feel that the clarity of expectation is clear/ very clear.
• The number of students who feel that they have a trusted adult they can talk to has grown by 14 percentage points.
• The percentage of children who say that they find their learning interesting has jumped by a third and is now significantly above the national average.
Parents/Carers
• The percentage of parents who feel it is easy/quite easy to contact the school has gone up close to 10%.
• There was a big increase in the number of parents and carers who feel informed about their child’s attendance and punctuality, with responses improving by up to 21%.
• The percentage of parents/carers who feel communicated with around their child’s behaviour now exceeds the national average.
Civic responsibilities
We want our students to understand the importance of their civic responsibilities that lead to the betterment of others and is sustained by the positive contribution that our pupils and students make to society long into adulthood.
Two local charities that are close to our hearts are the Our Jay Foundation, founded in the memory of a former pupil, and Rugby Foodbank which provides such a lifeline for so many. We are proud that we were able to support them once again in 2024.
Saving lives with Our Jay Foundation
Pupils and students from across the Trust have taken part in fundraising activities and sponsorship events to help install defibrillators across Rugby.
In addition, 225 Year 9 pupils from Ashlawn School took part in a CPR/AED Information and Awareness Session through the foundation, and Houlton School pupils also participated in similar training for Restart a Heart Day. Henry Hinde also benefited from having the equipment installed at both school sites.
Gathering donations for Rugby Foodbank
This year pupils and students from across the Trust made huge efforts to support Rugby Food Bank by collecting food and essential supplies to donate.
It is estimated that over 500kg of food was donated as part of Harvest Festival alone, to support the food bank’s drive to provide nutritionally balanced emergency food and support to local people who are referred to them in crisis.
What we are doing to:
Deliver Excellence
We strive to achieve our best.
Deliver Excellence
We will know that we are delivering excellence when:
• our systems and structures ensure equity for all
• we have a codified model of school improvement
• professional expertise is highly accessible and easily shared
• our academies enjoy sustained strong performance.
Systems and Structures
Our Central Services
TLET’s Central Team is proud to deliver the core business functions of our academies. Specialists in Finance, HR, IT and Estates Management work to ensure the smooth day-to-day running of operations allowing academy leaders to focus on our learning provision.
Over the course of the last year, each team has been focusing on reshaping the services on offer to our academies, providing more efficient and effective systems, processes and support.
This has included the integration of Sage Finance as well as Every HR and Compliance which have helped to streamline areas such as procurement, appraisals and policy management.
The IT department has also undertaken significant transformation projects, including email migration to a single platform across the Trust, installation of superfast WiFi and broadband with backup lines as well as a new server infrastructure and a new phone system.
“Our central team underpins and strengthens all that happens in our academies. They bring new thinking, provide support and allow our educationalists to focus on what matters the most –that is getting the very best for our young people.”
James Higham, CEO
Investment in our Estates
With the notable exception of Houlton School, we continue to battle the ongoing maintenance and improvement requirements of our ageing school buildings.
We are proud, however, that as a Trust we have managed to:
Secure the funding to spend a total of £2.4m on improvements at Ashlawn School and Henry Hinde School in the last five years including:
Reception remodels
Classroom refurbishments
Canteen upgrades
IT servers
LED lighting
Fire safety works
Roofing
Boiler replacements
Codified Model of School Improvement
To reflect the diversity of our academies, our approach to school improvement focusses on delivering learning experiences that are tailored for the unique needs of each of our academy communities.
TLET’s Education Improvement Service Framework provides the foundations for this, setting out TLET’s Curriculum Principles and outlining the challenge and support provided for school leaders across the Trust. All our academies receive guidance on target setting, quality assurance and classification as well as continuing professional development, whilst additional tailored support is provided when required.
Throughout the year, the Trust’s Education Director has worked closely with school leaders to implement bespoke school improvement actions, monitor progress and identify areas for further development. Peer-to-Peer Reviews were also introduced to share expertise amongst academy leaders.
Professional expertise is highly accessible and easily shared
To help encourage our staff to share best practice and innovation we have built a raft of networks and development opportunities.
In addition, we:
• saw an expanded range of colleague-led professional networks, meeting termly to provide additional opportunities for professional development and collaboration.
•delivered on-demand, online training opportunities for all employees via Schoot, in order to fulfil statutory training requirements as well as expanding upon individual professional development goals.
Current
professional networks include:
• English
• Maths
• Science
• MFL
• Art & DT
• Computing
• Performing Arts
• PE
• Humanities
• Social Sciences
• SEND
• Teaching Assistants
• Data & Exams
• Pastoral/ Behaviour
• Attendance and Administration
• provided further opportunities for colleagues to access support with external CPD, including ECT mentoring support and the establishment of an ECT network as well as a Trust-wide focus on providing access to National Professional Qualifications and the SSAT National Award for Middle Leaders (NAML).
Celebrating our staff
We know that our staff do incredible work every day, but we are always particularly proud when they are recognised externally for their dedication and commitment to their roles. For example:
• Kylie Coulson, PE Coordinator at Henry Hinde School was awarded the Equal Access Award for Girls’ Football by England Football
• Russell Hill, Head of Faculty: Creative at Houlton School was a Silver Award Winner at the National Pearson Teaching Awards
• Marc Goodey, CFO at TLET was shortlisted for CFO of the Year at the MAT Excellence Awards
Academies enjoyed sustained strong performance
Outcomes across the Trust remain consistently strong.
Our schools continue to perform well against national averages, but we always know that there is more that we can do to support our students.
At KS1, our children perform above national averages against nearly every measure
For those making expected progress
• Reading is 15 percentage points above average
• Writing is 12 percentage points above average
• Maths is 7 percentage points above national
• Science is 7 percentage points about national
At Key Stage 2, the foundation stones have been laid for future success
• The number of children achieving top marks in the multiplication check has more than doubled.
• The percentage of children meeting the expected standards in reading, writing and maths has increased 7% in 2024.
At Key Stage 4, GCSEs continued to be strong
• Nearly 80% of students achieved at least a four in English, compared to a national average of 62%
• Three quarters of students secured a four or better in Maths, compared to a national average of 60%
• The percentage getting 5+ in both subjects is 10% higher than the national average
At Key Stage 5, our students went on to some exciting next steps due to the outcomes they achieved
• There was a 27% increase in the number of A*s and As achieved
• The average point score per entry improved by 11%
• The number of students achieving AAB in at least two facilitating subjects strengthened by 8%
• 90% of students secured their 1st choice university
Amazing results day at Ashlawn School as students move on to impressive destinations
Over the summer, students at Ashlawn School celebrated A-Level and BTEC results which were up on almost every measure on previous years.
The number of students achieving the top grades of A* and A was up by almost 25 per cent on last year, with the average grade for BTECs moving to a Distinction.
Luke managed to secure three A*s alongside training as part of the Great Britain gymnastics squad. His hope is to compete at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
He said: “I have had really strong support from the school as I have tried to balance training with my education. It has been a real team effort, and I am delighted with my results today.”
Maisie was also celebrating after securing an A in Chemistry. Maisie broke her back in a fall from a horse in 2023, and was unable to complete her exams last year as well as she would have hoped as she was in a back brace. Determined to secure the grades she needed to be accepted to train to become a Vet, she resat Chemistry in 2024 and secured the final A she needed to achieve her dream.
Maisie said: “I am blown away to get the grade this year. I have spent 20 hours per week studying this subject over the last 12 months, and getting the grade I needed now gives me the platform to achieve my dream of caring for large animals.”
Tom surpassed his own expectations to secure two A*s and an A. Tom said: “I can’t thank the school enough. The support over the last two years has been excellent, and my teachers really have done everything they could to support me.”
One student, Richard, has learnt at a TLET school from his primary schooling through to his A-Levels. Richard secured 3 A*s and opened up his results live on the BBC – who were at the school to capture Ashlawn’s many success stories.
Trust academies praised by Ofsted
“Decisive action” praised at Ashlawn School
Ashlawn School welcomed the outcome of a recent Ofsted visit – where inspectors praised leaders for taking “decisive action to help move the school forward”.
The monitoring visit, which was the first time inspectors had visited Ashlawn since the school was regraded from Outstanding, looked at every aspect of life at the school during a rigorous inspection process. At the conclusion, inspectors found that the school had “wasted no time in addressing the areas that needed to improve” so that “everyone feels valued and part of Ashlawn’s future”.
The Trust and school leaders were also praised for making swift changes, and noted that “together as a school community, you have set about creating a new clear and
coherent vision for the school.”
The schools inspectorate also praised the “strong strategic oversight of the school’s work” undertaken by Governors and trust leaders, and how “they are using the trust’s capacity effectively to help provide support and challenge to school leaders.”
Paul Brockwell, Principal at Ashlawn School, said: “A huge amount has been achieved over the last 12 months to ensure that Ashlawn is a place where every young person can thrive, and we are extremely pleased to see Ofsted recognise all the hard work being undertaken by students, staff and our wider community.”
Houlton School “is aspirational for all its pupils”
During their first visit to Houlton School in February 2024, inspectors judged the school to be ‘Good’ across all areas. They noted that:
• Houlton School is aspirational for all its pupils, including those pupils with special needs and/or disabilities (SEND). It wants all pupils to achieve well academically and be ready for life in the wider world.
• The school has developed a broad and wide-ranging curriculum for all pupils. The academic curriculum sits alongside a ‘co-curriculum’ that extends pupils’ learning beyond their taught subjects.
• Pupils with SEND are expected to learn the same ambitious curriculum as their peers. Staff identify pupils’ specific needs and share detailed information
with teachers so that they can support pupils in their lessons.
• The trust and governors provide effective support and challenge to leaders and this is helping to distil, strengthen and share the vision for the school.
Michael McCulley, Principal at Houlton School, said: “This was our first official, graded Ofsted since we opened in 2021, so it is truly a milestone moment for us. What we also take great heart from is that the inspectors were very much talking about our overall journey to Outstanding as part of their feedback – what we need, more than anything, is further time to embed our aspirations and ethos.”
