Record of high-profile trust, to be handed up to �750,000 by the government to provide “exemplary leadership” training, invites questions

A high-profile academy trust, which has reportedly won a government contract worth up to �750,000 to provide “exemplary leadership” training, saw one of its schools criticised by Ofsted less than a year ago for the way it managed pupils leaving for home education.

The Inspiration Trust, which was founded by the former academies minister Lord Agnew, was one of four academy chains which Schools Week reported yesterday had won a share of £1.5m from the government. This has been controversial after ministers said it would only be open to “schools with a knowledge-rich curriculum”.

Yet the award to the IT seems particularly curious given, as I report below, Ofsted’s recent verdict on East Point Academy in Suffolk; the chain’s middling Ofsted record overall; the relatively large amount it has spent on staff severance payments; and seemingly high turnover rates among its headteachers.

Ofsted visit to East Point Academy

Last November, Ofsted visited East Point Academy, in Lowestoft in Suffolk, after the inspectorate had become concerned “about pupil movement and potential off-rolling, and to check the effectiveness of safeguarding arrangements”.