Academisation
Welcome
Welcome to the Thorn Grove Primary School consultation page.
We are currently exploring an exciting next step for our school: joining the Laurus Trust. Over the past 18 months, the Governing Body has carefully reviewed a range of multi-academy trusts to identify a partner whose values, educational vision, and commitment to children closely align with our own.
As part of this thorough work, governors have engaged with a range of trusts, asked detailed and challenging questions, and carefully considered what each could offer. A key focus has been identifying a partner whose ethos, ambition, and commitment to high-quality education closely match our own. We have been particularly mindful of protecting the strong sense of community, inclusivity, and care that makes Thorn Grove so special.
We are now pleased to share that, at this stage, we believe The Laurus Trust is the right partner for Thorn Grove. Their values, educational vision, and track record of supporting schools align closely with our aspirations for the future of our children and our school. The Laurus Trust is a well-established and highly regarded trust, sharing our vision that every child—regardless of background or circumstance—should be inspired, encouraged to set aspirational goals, and supported to work hard to achieve them.
We are incredibly excited about the opportunity this potential partnership could bring, including access to wider expertise, collaboration with other schools, and enhanced professional development for staff—all of which would support the continued development of Thorn Grove.
We are launching a listening period to gather the views of our school community on this opportunity. We encourage you to take a few moments to read the information on this site and share your thoughts with us. There is an online survey available here, and any questions submitted will be responded to key themes at the bottom of this page. We are committed to being open and transparent throughout this process, ensuring that all feedback is visible and addressed.
Thank you for taking the time to visit this page and for your continued support of Thorn Grove Primary School.
What is an academy?
An academy is a non-fee paying state-school which is funded by, and accountable to, the Government rather than a local authority (LA). To help the running of that school, there is a board of independent trustees or governors, and the money for the running of that school is paid directly to the school.
An academy has to be part of a group of academies, known as a multi-academy trust.
Why are we doing this?
There has been lots of talk about schools becoming academies over the last 10 years. Now about 80% of all secondary schools in England are academies, and nearly half of all primary schools.
The Department for Education is encouraging more structured collaboration across schools to promote best practice and resource sharing. The government is expecting all schools to join or form a high quality multi-academy trust. We feel that this is the right approach and right time for us because:
Our school does lots of things brilliantly - but we always know that there is more we can do. By enabling our teachers to work with other teachers who teach children of similar ages, we can better share ideas and resources. We don’t have to keep reinventing the wheel!
We want to free up our school leaders so that they can focus on helping our children to thrive in the classroom. By accessing a Trust with a very strong central team, we can put a greater focus on helping to continue to improve things in the classroom.
The Government is continually making changes to how they fund schools, and what they expect schools to use that funding for. These changes have added pressure to our already tight resources. It is important that we take some positive steps now to support us in the future.
What does this mean for you?
For Our Staff
At Thorn Grove Primary School, our staff are the vital foundation of our community, and their continued well-being and professional success are our top priorities as we consider joining the Laurus Trust. Should we proceed with this conversion, all staff members with an existing employment contract will automatically transfer under TUPE regulations, ensuring that their current terms and conditions remain unchanged. This transition will involve a comprehensive consultation process with employees and unions to ensure every voice is heard. Furthermore, we believe this partnership will significantly enhance career progression by placing high-quality professional learning and pedagogical development at the heart of our shared culture. Staff will also gain access to a wide range of "Valuing You" benefits, including an Employee Assistance Programme, 24/7 GP helplines, subsidised gym memberships, and mental health support, all designed to foster a thriving and supportive working environment.
For Our Families
At Thorn Grove Primary School, our priority is ensuring that every child is nurtured to be a curious, respectful, and aspirational individual. By exploring a partnership with the Laurus Trust, we aim to protect the unique community, inclusivity, and care that make our school so special while gaining the greater capacity and shared expertise of a larger educational network. Families can expect the core values of Thorn Grove to only strengthen, as collaboration with the Trust brings wider benefits, enhanced professional development for our staff, and even greater opportunities for our children to thrive in all environments.
For Our Community
Thorn Grove is a truly unique mainstream primary school, defined by a rich and diverse community where over 20 languages are spoken. This vibrant environment provides the perfect context to celebrate culture and inspire our children to value everything that makes us who we are. Central to our identity is our specialist Deaf Base; managed by the Stockport Hearing and Vision Specialist Service, it offers a sign-bilingual approach for pupils within the borough. These children are fully integrated into every aspect of school life, ensuring that our entire student body benefits from daily exposure to British Sign Language and the highest levels of communication-friendly teaching. By joining the Laurus Trust, we aim to protect and strengthen this inclusive ethos. We believe that the Trust’s "whatever it takes" commitment to levelling the playing field will provide the shared expertise and greater capacity needed to ensure our unique, diverse community continues to thrive and lead the way in inclusive education.
Understanding the implications of joining a Multi-Academy Trust
It’s been really important for us to identify the potential drawbacks from joining a Trust as well as the benefits.
A sense of a loss of identity – we will only consider joining a Trust that recognises and values our uniqueness.
Removal of responsibility/financial control – each Trust’s Scheme of Delegated Authority outlines how responsibilities and financial control are shared between the Trust Board, the Executive and Local Governing Bodies and academy leaders. We have scrutinised this carefully.
Level of experience and expertise in the Trust’s governance – strong Academy Trust’s should have robust recruitment policies and procedures for those in governance roles, as well as annual professional development programmes.
Damage to reputation if other academies in the Trust are ‘failing’ – the Laurus Trust currently has a strong track record and sensible growth plans.
The Laurus Trust
The Laurus Trust is a Multi-Academy Trust (MAT), committed to providing exceptional academic education to its family of schools across Stockport, Manchester, Tameside, and Cheshire East.
Schools under the Laurus Trust consistently achieve outstanding results through a relentless pursuit of excellence and a dedication to student success.
Cheadle Hulme High School is the founding school of the Laurus Trust and was rated ‘Outstanding’ in the school’s last inspection and regularly features in the The Times and The Sunday Times Parent Power listing. The Trust’s commitment to excellence is evident not only at its founding school, but also in the outstanding achievements of Laurus Ryecroft, Laurus Cheadle Hulme, Didsbury High School, Gorsey Bank Primary and Woodford Primary – all receiving the top rating from Ofsted in their most recent inspections.
The Trust comprises of six primary schools, six high schools with four sixth forms and one specialist school for children with social, emotional and mental health needs. All schools in the Multi-Academy Trust share the ultimate vision and aim which is for everyone regardless of background or circumstance to be inspired, to thrive in all environments, to recognise what it takes to succeed, to set aspirational goals and work hard to achieve them.
There are three core principles at the Laurus Trust, which lead a culture of academic and enriching excellence to cultivate students to not just be academically strong, but also well developed individuals. This commitment extends to their employees as well. The Laurus Institute delivers professional development, ensuring each member of staff have the tools and knowledge to excel with their own professional learning. Every school in the Laurus Trust is judged Good or better by Ofsted, and results stand shoulder-to-shoulder with national outcomes.
To find out more, visit the Trust's website by clicking on the link below.
These are some of the questions we’ve been asked so far — we’ll continue to add more as we listen and gather feedback.
What are the benefits of becoming an academy?
There are lots of views and opinions about academies. Supporters say that academies allow schools some additional freedoms, give leaders greater control of finances and help smaller and stronger collaborations to form between groups of like-minded schools.
Will that make our school less accountable to our community?
This is something that we have considered in depth. Different Trusts operate in different ways, and we have been careful to ensure that the Trusts we have identified have:
A group of members and trustees who are predominantly from the local community.
A commitment to retaining our governing body, and delegate appropriate levels of responsibility to them.
Are fully supportive of PTAs, and ensure that funds for each individual PTA remain with their schools.
Will the school have to change its name or identity?
It won’t. The Laurus Trust has confirmed that there is no intention to change the name and identity of the school. That is something that is determined by the school, not the Trust.
Will the school's vision and ethos change?
The Trust has a document called the Scheme of Delegation. This determines what is decided by the Trust's Directors and what is decided by Governing Bodies. The vision and ethos of our school is determined by the school itself.
Will the curriculum change?
The Laurus Trust will not seek to mirror curriculum provision across their academies because they believe that this can undermine the success of a curriculum that is well-matched to the needs of an academy’s community. Instead, they prefer to facilitate enhancements to the curriculum by looking at best practices in other academies in the Trust and beyond.
Will any staff leave if we are joining a Trust?
We hope not. In fact, a major drive is to provide better CPD (continuing professional development) and enhanced career opportunities for all of our staff. Moving into a MAT will also not mean any change to the staff’s Terms and Conditions. Staff would officially be employed by a multi-academy trust, but their existing employment rights would move across under the TUPE rules and thus be protected. Staff pay will reflect market conditions.
Will there be any change to the admissions policy?
The current arrangements, which are determined by the local authority, would remain in place. That means being very inclusive by welcoming children with disabilities and special needs and giving preferential admission to siblings.
Will the term dates change?
Any changes to current arrangements would always go out to full consultation with all stakeholders as we appreciate and understand how difficult that would be if you had children at more than one school.
Will a parent’s and carer’s right to complain be affected?
No. If academy conversion takes place there will be, as there is now, a complaints policy which gives an avenue for parents or carers to complain. Every outside agency currently available to parents and carers will remain unchanged.
Can Trust's make a profit?
No. While Trusts are required to have financial reserves to support schools in case of a problem, they are what is known as a Charity Limited by Guarantee. This means that at their core, a MAT is a charity and can only use funds to support the education of children.
Will the school have their contract with the Trust examined by an independent solicitor to ensure their rights are protected?
The framework for the relationship between a school and a MAT is laid out in a funding agreement between the Department for Education and the Trust. This is largely a standard contract that is the same for all academies. Operationally, how decisions are made, and who they are made by, is set out in a MAT’s Scheme of Delegation. This provides the framework to ensure that there are clear lines of clarity and accountability.
Have Your Say.....
We would love to hear your thoughts and views on this exciting next step for Thorn Grove. Please click here to complete a short feedback form.