Education for the 21st Century (E21C) is a values-led organisation, driven by a determination to create welcoming and open schools for the local community, where every person thrives, makes excellent progress, and succeeds. There are currently four secondary schools and four primary schools within the Trust. Four of the primary schools and three of the secondary schools are located in Bromley, South East London and a further secondary is close to Canterbury in Kent.

Its Primary academies offer an excellent education for children in Reception to Year 6. Children aged 4 to 11 receive support and encouragement from a dedicated team of staff. The family of schools also include secondary academies. Secondary schools in the Trust aim to imbue students with the skills necessary to excel in whatever they choose to do.

The Trust is committed to improving outcomes and transforming lives, realising social mobility, and the transformative power of education. It values the difference in all of its schools while seeking to bring them together around a framework that delivers an enriching experience and a great education for the young people within its care. E21C’s primary academies focus on nurturing each child as a young person, not just academically but socially and emotionally too. It encourages each child to develop a lifelong love of learning.

The Trust is ambitious and the Board is passionate about school improvement and becoming a model for other schools and MATs whilst going from strength to strength and making a real difference in young people and the community. As the Trust reaches the completion of its strategic plan for the previous three years, now is a particularly exciting time to join the Board – as Members play a key role in reviewing and honing the strategy for the next three years, those who join the Board now will have the opportunity to be instrumental both in setting the right strategy and in overseeing its successful execution throughout the duration of their term.

Please click here to learn more about E21C's principles; potential candidates may also like to watch this video to learn more about what E21C offers and its impact.

The Members of an Academy Trust are the guardians of the governance of the Trust. They have both a limited yet distinct role. Members have responsibility for ensuring that the purpose of the Trust is met, determining the Trust’s constitution and governance structure, and appointing and removing Trustees. Members have an overarching oversight role, with their other responsibilities being to appoint the external auditors and to receive the annual accounts and financial statements from the Trustees.

Members play a limited but crucial role in safeguarding academy trust governance. They sit above the Trustees and follow a hands-off approach with their main responsibility being oversight of the Trustees. They should not stray into undertaking the Trustees' role but should assure themselves that the governance of the Trust is effective, that Trustees are acting in accordance with the Trust’s charitable object(s) and that they, the Members, use their powers to step in if governance is failing.

Most notably, Members are responsible for defining the Trust’s charitable object, amending the articles of association, appointing or removing Trustees, appointing the Trust’s auditors and receiving the Trust’s annual audited accounts, and ultimately dissolving the Trust if required.

Candidates will ideally bring experience in leadership roles whilst also bringing a strategic vision to the Board. They will ideally bring previous governance experience, either from the corporate or charity sectors. It would be desirable, but not essential if candidates also have an educational background. The new Members of EC21 will be committed to the ethos and values of the academy which has a particular focus on providing a holistic education.

Please click here for more information about the Board. 

Members meet four times per year; these meetings will either be online or in-person (in Bromley and Kent), but this is flexible according to Members’ availability. There is also an annual strategy day, and each Board Committee meets three times per year online. All meeting dates will be provided a year in advance. Members will be required to prepare for meetings with readings and provide remote support on occasion. This role is unremunerated, but reasonable travel expenses will be reimbursed.

E21C welcomes applications from everyone regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, faith or disability. It is particularly keen to improve the diversity of the Board and ensure that it is representative of the communities it supports. As those from an ethnic minority background and individuals of different age groups are currently underrepresented on the Board, applications from those individuals would be particularly encouraged. All appointments will be made on merit, following a fair and transparent process. In line with the Equality Act 2010, however, the organisation may employ positive action where candidates from underrepresented groups can demonstrate their ability to perform the role equally well.