Growth Strategy
Elevate aims to grow on a sustainable basis over the next few years with additional schools already planned to join the Trust in September 2022 and a new primary free school in 2024.
We continue to build capacity in our school improvement and central teams to ensure that we can support schools well ahead of them joining the Trust.
We aim to grow through a mixture of voluntary conversions, sponsored conversions and free schools. As we do so, we will further develop and define our innovative area hub model to support our anticipated growth. The aim is to enable smaller schools, where sustainability is key, to join Elevate and benefit from our approach. We believe that by sharing some more specialist services within a hub backed by the robust systems and excellent school improvement of the central team we can bring the benefits of the support of a Trust structure while allowing schools to maintain their individual character and local links to the community which we see as a core function of schools.
Voluntary Conversions
Good and outstanding performing schools have joined Elevate since its inception in 2017 through choice and determination to adopt academisation in a positive and proactive way.
We encourage schools who may be considering joining a Trust to get in touch with us and explore Gavin Williamson's 'try before you buy' strategy which he launched in May 2021. This opens up the opportunity for schools to develop an understanding of how Trusts work, what the immediate benefits are in terms of collaboration, the Central Team support and the financial advantages of economies of scale through collective purchasing and negotiation.
Sponsored Conversions
Where Elevate is named as the preferred sponsor for a school, we work closely with the Regional Schools Commissioner’s team throughout. We aim to develop a relationship as quickly as possible with key personnel at the school and provide constant communication and support at every stage. That assists rapid school improvement and ensures a smooth transition to conversion and the school successfully joining the Elevate family of schools.
Free Schools
May 2021 - Manse Farm, Knaresborough
Elevate Multi Academy Trust is very proud to announce that it is has been awarded the opportunity to operate a new primary free school at Manse Farm in Knaresborough, working with North Yorkshire County Council and the Department for Education.
The Regional Schools Commissioner confirmed the appointment to Elevate on Friday 7th May 2021 following a rigorous, competitive selection process.
Nigel Ashley, CEO, stated ‘On behalf of Elevate and my team, I am delighted that we have been awarded such a prestigious honour to develop future educational excellence for new families who will be moving into the Manse Farm Estate area. Our utmost priority is quality provision where we all can achieve together and we look forward to opening the doors to our new, free school in September 2023’.
May 2018 - Keeble Gateway Academy
In 2018, Elevate was awarded the opportunity to open a new one-form entry primary school in Sowerby. Keeble Gateway Academy opened its doors in September 2019. This school was named after Dame Reena Keeble, a celebrated educationalist with a damehood for her services to education who has been instrumental in helping to shape Trust philosophy. Keeble Gateway Academy opened in the first year, with up to 30 Reception children and 25 nursery children and will grow by 30 children in Reception every subsequent year.
