One of the country’s largest multi-academy trusts said it is facing the “most challenging” financial environment “for a decade” in its latest annual accounts.
Oasis Community Learning’s 2023-24 accounts reveal its reserves fell as two schools left the trust and as the cost-of-living crisis affected staff, pupils and local communities.
CEO John Barneby told Tes: “Schools are the piece of infrastructure that actually still exists in most local communities, and the challenges of other social services land on schools’ doorsteps.
“When we talk about the challenging situation, we’re at a point where money is extremely tight in schools now - you throw in the special educational needs crisis on top of all those other bits and you can see why we think it’s a very challenging operating environment at the moment. Not impossible, but extremely challenging.”
Reserves fall by £5.3m
OCL, which has 54 academies around the country, saw revenue reserves decrease by £5.3 million to £18.6 million during the year, . This amounts to 7.5 per cent of general annual grant (GAG) funding.
In the accounts, Oasis said the reduction in reserves arose partly from two schools - Oasis Academy Isle of Sheppey and Oasis Academy Longmeadow - leaving the trust.
Other reasons included a decision to buy - rather than lease - iPads for the trust’s primary schools, and to invest in capital projects and targeted school support.
The trust added that it intends to reduce reserves further through investments in recruitment and retention, inclusion, school improvement and dealing with falling rolls.
Its annual accounts state: “Our academies, their staff and students continue to feel the pressures and challenges of the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and the communities which we serve are still hugely impacted.
“As an organisation we need to ensure that we work holistically to respond to the landscape in which we operate and although the financial environment of the Trust is the most challenging it has been for a decade, we plan to further reduce the level of reserves through committed investments.”
Mr Barneby, who was appointed permanent CEO in December 2023 after taking the role on an interim basis, said Oasis’ scale gives it more options than smaller trusts.
“Speaking to smaller trusts, I do feel deeply concerned if you’re not able to get the efficiencies that you can get at scale,” he added.
Last year, half of Oasis’ pupils were eligible for pupil premium funding - roughly twice the national proportion. And more than a third (35 per cent) spoke English as an additional language, which is also well above the national average.
During the year, primary attendance at the trust was 93.3 per cent, 1.2 percentage points below the national average. Secondary attendance was also below the national average of 90.9 per cent at 88.3 per cent.
Training in ‘inclusive practice’
Like much of the sector, Oasis has also seen a rise in exclusions since lockdown. At secondary, exclusions increased from 18 in 2021-22 to 62 in 2022-23, and fell very slightly to 59 last year.
The trust said it has launched a strategy to address these trends as of September 2024, including training and support for school leaders to help them embed inclusive practice.
The trust has also established a curriculum strategy across its primaries, which it said has helped to create equity across its schools and to ensure value for money when buying resources.
Mr Barneby said he believes this work can be adjusted later if needed to reflect the curriculum and assessment review.
“When we think about curriculum, we’ve got to remember what we’re all doing, and we’ve got to have that sense of purpose and inclusion alongside the knowledge and skills,” he added.
Not having a device will ‘hinder learning’
Mr Barneby said that there was “no doubt” that the trust’s classrooms are more inclusive as a result of its use of technology, for example by providing accessibility support to pupils who need it.
Oasis also said it has been able to influence the direction of online standardised testing in the sector, and is working with sector leaders on the use of artificial intelligence in education through its iPad scheme.
“We think we’re going to reach a tipping point where not having a device will start to hinder people’s ability to access technological advancements like the opportunity with more personalised learning,” Mr Barneby said.
“I think we’re years away from it being a requirement, but it takes time to truly embed technology, to upskill staff and leaders and build curriculums where it is actually integrated and not just an add-on.”
The Department for Education announced last month that all new teachers will undergo mandatory training in using assistive technology to support children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
Top earner’s pay
The top earner at OCL was paid between £180,001 and £190,000 last year. In 2022-23, the highest earner was paid between £240,001 and £250,000.
The trust did not confirm whether this top earner was the CEO or whether the fall was owing to Mr Barneby being interim for part of the year.
