Working Together to Strengthen Education

You may have seen recent discussion nationally on the academy programme for schools. As a family of Catholic schools we have been discussing these issues and proposed models since 2010, so have had plenty of time to discern the next steps in partnership with the Diocese and guided by the wishes of the Bishop and Trustees.

The proposed plan is to set up groups of Catholic schools based around deaneries of primary and secondary schools to work together to build strength and consistency in all we do and to enrich the opportunities in Catholic education. The deanery group of which we will be a part of includes three deaneries (Lewes, Mayfield and Crawley) and eleven primary and two secondary schools.

All of the schools involved in the deaneries have formally 'expressed an interest' through their Governing bodies. This will enable us to develop these plans and ways to work even more closely together. Ultimately, each school’s governing body will choose independently if and when it would be right to join the multi-academy trust and will enter into discussion and consultation to seek the feedback of parents, pupils and staff to help shape their plans.

We believe, as Catholic schools, we should work collaboratively to strengthen and protect the distinctive nature and ethos of our schools. We would be looking to ensure that we develop and sustain high standards of leadership and learning whilst deepening the faith of all our pupils. We are committed to ensuring that each school will retain a clear individual identity within the family of Catholic schools.