Unity Schools Trust consists of two secondary schools for students aged 11-16: The Magna Carta School in Staines and the Bishop David Brown School in Woking. More detail on the Trust and its schools can be found on its websites.

In August 2021, the Trust appointed a new CEO, Michael del Rio (previously a highly successful Head Teacher) and a new Head of School was appointed at The Magna Carta School. The Head of School of Bishop David Brown has been in post for approximately four years and has led a significant uplift in academic performance based on improved teaching, leadership and community outreach.

The Trust is governed by a Board of Trustees. The Board now seeks to both replenish members lost by natural turnover and expand its total number of Trustees. The Board advises and challenges the new leadership team in its mission to:

• Deliver outstanding academic results and outcomes for its students
• Develop and deliver a robust financial strategy
• Maximise the benefits of inter-school collaboration
• Grow the Trust by adding primary schools and further secondary schools

Potential Trustees have a great opportunity to join a Trust at a critical stage in its evolution as it further defines its vision and strategy and seeks to grow to become a major educational asset for its communities.

The new Trustee will become a member of the Board and its Finance, Audit and Risk Committee.

Trustees are expected to focus on:

• Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction
• Holding executive leaders to account for the educational performance of the organisation and its pupils, and the performance management of staff
• Overseeing and ensuring effective financial performance

The Board is expected to provide the Trust with:

• Strategic leadership that sets and champions vision, ethos and strategy
• Accountability that drives up educational standards and financial performance
• People with the right skills, experience, qualities and capacity
• Structures which reinforce clearly-defined roles and responsibilities
• Compliance with statutory and contractual requirements
• Evaluation of governance to monitor and improve its quality and impact

The Trust is seeking a new Trustee who brings previous experience in a strategic leadership or board-level role from within a large business, public or third sector organisation.

This role presents an opportunity for the right individuals to use their experience and skills to assist the Trust in its mission and hence improve outcomes for thousands of young people. The Board is particularly interested in new Trustees who can assist with some of the following:

• Identifying and delivering the benefits of being part of a collaborative organisation
• Maximising the impact of educational improvement programmes
• Optimising governance structures and communication processes
• Supporting and delivering growth
• Developing and implementing an optimum financial strategy

A list of current Trustees can be found here.    

The Board meets formally four times per year, and its Committees meet three to four times per year. Reasonable domestic travel expenses will be reimbursed if required. Board meetings are in person (typically at The Magna Carta School) and Committee meetings are mostly online. Additional ad hoc meetings may be required from time to time and are mostly online. Trustees are also expected to visit the schools from time to time to meet relevant members of the leadership team and to better understand the schools and their ethos. Trustees will be provided with appropriate training to maintain and improve their knowledge and skills and hence support Board development.

Appointments are for a period of four years and are renewable with agreement of the Members. Both the Chair and Vice Chair may stand down in the next one to five years, so there may be opportunities for succession for the right candidates.

Unity Schools Trust is an equal-opportunities organisation and welcomes applications from all candidates with the right skills and experience. This is particularly important given the diversity of the students and communities it serves.

Applicants will be UK-based and able to attend in-person Board meetings.