Trust Board

The Board of Trustees set the strategic direction, vision and ethos of Veritas Multi Academy Trust and are accountable to the Secretary of State for Education for standards across trust schools. The Board undertakes the following key roles:

Finance & Audit

- Appoint Accounting Officer & Chief Financial Officer.

- Produce a Trustees Report annually.

- Submit budget statement to the EFA for each academy.

- Audit financial procedures annually in each academy to ensure financial compliance.

- Appoint an accountant to engage in an audit of financial procedures across the trust and produce corporate accounts.

- Submission of bids to the EFA on behalf of academies in the trust.

- Manage the retention of funds for emergency work and the contribution of funds from academies in the trust to the Trust Board.

- Run financial audit checks and report to the Trust Board.

- Ensure sufficient Insurance is in place to safeguard the trust .

- Application for capital funding bids.

Ethos and Marketing

- Production of Trust Prospectus.

- Approve Trust Business Plan.

- Promotion of trust growth.

- Due diligence for academies joining the trust.

- Quality assure commissioning of support to other schools.

-  Appoint trustees.

Human Resources

- Appointment and disciplinary action relating to senior staff and appraisal of senior staff.

- Ensure parity of pay and conditions across Regional Governing Boards.

- Appoint a CEO and Company Secretary.

- Ensure pension funds are administered correctly.

- Quality assure the complaints procedures across the trust.

- Hear an appeal against the procedures relating to how the Regional Governing Boards handled a complaint in accordance with Trust Complaints Policy.

Infrastructure & Procurement

- Maintain a time line of statutory duties to comply with health and safety legislation.

- Quality assure Regional Governing Boards ensuring they have systems in place to maintain the health and safety standards of their academies.

- Quality assure the procurement undertaken as a trust and across academies within the trust.

Standards

- Quality assure the strategic plans approved by the Regional Governing Boards.

- Quality assure the system of self-review approved by the Regional Governing Boards.

- Quality assure the Regional Governing Boards’ actions to ensure statutory requirements for safeguarding are being maintained.

- Determine and uphold the Trust Ethos Statement.

- Provide opportunities for staff to engage in school to school support both across and beyond the trust.

- Approve the Trust Strategic Plan.

- Approve the Trust Self-Review.

Trustees

 

   Mr Gary Bristow - Chair of Trustees - 

I have been a school governor prior to becoming a trustee of Veritas MAT.  I have worked in business and communications and run my own business.  I am based in the community of Deal and volunteer with the local RNLI. I am committed to supporting Veritas MAT in providing the highest quality of education to the pupils attending its academies.

  Mr Douglas Price - Vice Chair of Trustees and Trustee responsible for infrastructure and procurement.

I  joined the Board of Trustees as a governor in 2015. I currently work as a Health Safety and Training Manager for one of the UK’s major construction companies. I have a wealth of knowledge and experience in these fields and will strive to proactively maintain the health, safety and well being of all the pupils, staff, parents and guests who attend this exceptional, outstanding school. The school is close to my heart. Both my brother and I went to the school some years ago and I currently have family members here in various capacities. It is a great school with great people and I am proud to be a part of it.

    Mr Graham Chisnell – CEO & Trustee; responsible for standards, ethos and marketing.

I am Chief Executive Officer and Trustee of the Multi-Academy Trust and a school governor on the Regional Governing Body.  As a trustee, I am responsible for attending the Trust Board meetings and Local Governor Body Meetings.  I have been a headteacher and school governor in three primary schools since 1998 and am currently a National Leader of Education, Mentor-Coach for the Chartered College of Teaching and Ofsted Inspector.  Before coming into headship, I was a lecturer in science education and initial teacher training at Canterbury Christ Church University. I chair the Canterbury Christ Church University hub for the Chartered College of Teaching and am a mentor for the Chartered Teacher Status programme.

 

 

 

Dr Patricia Driscoll - Trustee responsible for standards and evidence-informed practice.  

I am a senior partnership lecturer and doctoral supervisor at Canterbury Christ Church University.  I have expertise in early language learning and teaching, pedagogy, intercultural learning and teacher development. I have a passion for the development of evidence-informed practices in teachers and school staff.

 

    Mr Simon Smith - Trustee - Responsible for business.

I am a fully qualified HR professional with over 20 years of supporting the delivery people agendas and the development of HR Strategies in various organisations. My career experience includes time spent working for the AXA Group in London and Tunbridge Wells followed by 5 years working in higher education, where I held the position of Assistant Director - Employee Relations and Business Partnering at the University of Kent. More recently I have returned to work for the Saga Group in Folkestone where I lead the HR for the Insurance and Financial Services businesses. 

I try and adopt a strong sense of community, and have always tried to support community activities, either through my work or via volunteer sports coaching, and so the opportunity to become a Trustee of the Veritas MAT Board presents me with a great a opportunity to use my professional experience and skills  to help the Schools, staff and ultimately pupils and parents.

 

  Mr Louie Werth - Trustee -

I am a lecturer at Canterbury Christ Church University in childhood studies. I have been a teaching assistant in school and am currently studying for a doctorate with Cambridge University. I bring a wealth of understanding to this role as an educationalist and analytical thinker.

     Mrs Alison Moon - Trustee - Company Secretary & Trust Business Manager.

I am the Trust Business Manager, Company Secretary and Trustee.  I attend various strategy groups which inform the trustees including Finance and Estates and I am accredited as a Fellow of ISBL (The Institute of School Business Leadership) formerly NASBM.  Having been involved in trust matters since our academy conversion in 2013; I took on the role of Company Secretary of the trust in September 2015.  I have experience in academy conversion and the associated legal processes as well as Finance, HR and buildings. I have a Masters Degree in Educational Leadership and Management and in October 2017 was inducted as a Schools Efficiency Advisor for the Department for Education.

 

Supporting Veritas Multi Academy Trust Board

Mrs Dawn Hunter-Wardle - Clerk to the  RGB and Trustees.

 

Register of Pecuniary Interests for Trustees, Regional Governors and Trust Staff

Name	Role	Term of Office	Groups	Pecuniary Interest/membership of professional body	Organisation in which interest Held
Gary Bristow	Chair of Trustees    Trustee	22/5/18 - 22/5/22	Business	Previous spouse - teacher	Warden House Primary School
Douglas Price	Vice-Chair of Trustees Vice-Chair of Governor	19/07/19 - 19/7/23	Infrastructure HTPM	Director   Charters Member Member of review panel	Price and Price Associates IOSH IOSH
Dr Patricia Driscoll	Trustee	10/10/17 - 10/10/21		Research Development Lead	Canterbury Christ Church University
Simon Smith	Trustee	30/1/18 - 30/1/22	Business	HR	SAGA
Graham Chisnell	Principal & Trust CEO Governor Trustee	Ongoing	Infrastructure Business	Executive Headteacher      Spouse - Teacher Member Member and Regional Hub Chair NCTL - National Leader Ofsted Inspector	Warden House & Pilgrims' Way Primary School Worth Primary NAHT CCT   NLE Consultant Ofsted
Louie Werth	Trustee	30/1/18 - 30/1/22		Lecturer   Director	Christ Church University Care Research Ltd
Alison Moon	Trust Business Manager & Company Secretary Trustee	Ongoing       27/3/18 - 27/3/22	Business   Infrastructure	Spouse - Proprietor     Member Member and Fellow	GJM Construction   UNISON ISBL
Angela Parkes	Trustee	11/12/19 - 11/12/23	Business	None	None