Future Academies governance rules seem to underscore the tight control of its board and management

Heavily redacted minutes of a Future board meeting, as seen in 2017

Parents elected to a “local governing body” of a controversial academy trust face following rules which ask them to raise any concerns about the performance of a member of staff there with its chair, who will then pass them on to the chief executive.

The only problem is that the latter two positions, in this school and others run by Future Academies, are currently filled by the same person.

This seems to underscore the very limited degree to which Future, which was set up and is controlled by the former academies minister Lord Nash and his wife Lady Caroline, is accountable to its schools’ local communities.

Education Uncovered has also learnt that Future’s set of requirements for local governors also state that they must act in accordance with the Nolan principles, one of which is openness. Yet this is the trust that, when Education Uncovered asked to view its board meeting minutes, eventually provided documents with page after page of redactions.