Rapidly growing academy trust adds primary to group’s ‘family’
ONE OF the country’s fastestgrowing academy trusts has added another primary to its “family of schools”.
The Ebor Academy Trust, based in York, now has 16 schools under its leadership after Lakeside Primary School became part of the group.
It comes after the trust’s chief executive Richard Ludlow spoke of the benefits of expansion and told how lessons could be learned from the collapse of Wakefield City Academies Trust (WCAT), which is offloading all of its 21 schools.
Mr Ludlow said: “We welcome Lakeside and look forward to working alongside them. We consist of small village schools, large urban schools, schools in challenging circumstances and those which have capacity to support others. We celebrate the uniqueness of each individual setting and share skills and resources.”
Children and parents of Lakeside Primary Academy, as it is now known, will see little difference on a day-to-day basis, but behind the scenes there will be a range of benefits, Ebor said. A central team will run many of the back-office business functions and headteacher Debbie Cousins will remain in control.
Mrs Cousins said: “Ebor has strength and expertise that will benefit both the children and our staff – we are delighted to be part of this forward-thinking organisation. An exciting new chapter in Lakeside’s history has begun.”
Ebor now oversees 16 schools, with five more due to join by the start of the new academic year in September.
In York, with Lakeside, Ebor consists of Robert Wilkinson Primary Academy, Haxby Road Primary Academy and Park Grove Primary Academy. Hob Moor will be the next to join in May, with Osbaldwick to follow in July.
It is planning to run four hubs of between eight and 10 schools in York, Selby, the Yorkshire Coast and the East Riding.
Lakeside’s chair of governors Mikhaila Stanley said: “When governors chose to convert Lakeside we had the best interests of our children at heart.”