CEO's Blog - 24th March 2023 Our Organisation... The weeks are flying by and we're nearly at the end of the Spring term, so here's a snapshot of life at every one of our schools and settings. We're growing all the time, but our offer remains the best in special...
Gallery
Our gallery shows a selection of photographs from across our Academy.
CEO’s Blog – 17th March 2023 – ‘Thank You!’
CEO's Blog - 17th March 2023 'Thank You!' Well, if you've been following the updates on social media this week, you might just have noticed that almost 100 of our young people have been lucky enough to travel to Disneyland Paris. A trip that started on Monday...
CEO’s Blog (10th March 2023)
CEO's Blog (10th March 2023) It was International Women's Day this week, and it was great to see our schools and settings marking the occasion with their activities and learning opportunities. Of course, we shouldn't only celebrate our women and girls for just...
We are looking for our next CEO…
We are looking for our next CEO... It's probably been the worst kept secret for a while, but I'm writing my blog this week to let everyone know that we are actively looking for the next CEO of the New Bridge Multi Academy Group and MAT. After many years working as...
CEO’s Blog – Student Voice (24th February 2023)
CEO's Blog - Student Voice (24th February 2023) A few weeks ago, before the half term break, I said I would be reporting on how we listen to the Student Voice across our MAT and wider Group. Well, this week, I'm able to do just that, as some of our schools and...
There have been a few changes in and around the Trust this week.
We are in the really fortunate position of having a wealth of excellent “up and coming” leaders in and around our schools and organisations. As such, keeping them supporting with our children and ensuring that we place them in the right positions, with the right young staff, is absolutely essential.
The start of this “domino” was Daniel Wood. Dan has worked within the Trust, on and off, for the last 15 years. He started in our Creative Arts department, moved into PR and Marketing, led on our supported work placements and most recently took on board the head of site at Medtia role. Dan has always had a real eye for being “entrepreneurial” and finding unique opportunities. As such, he has been successful in taking up the role of Assistant CEO with a key responsibility for new developments and marketing. He is still going to lead our work in relation to careers and apprenticeships.
We also strengthen our executive team with the appointment of Phil Arnold. Phil is working alongside our heads at Spring Brook and the Springboard Project. Phil brings with him a wealth of experience from working within the social justice sector. He will help guide us in our strategy with young people who may need alternative offers. Phil also has lots of experience of setting up social enterprises. Phil and Daniel working alongside each other will be a formidable force. I, for one, can’t wait to see where it takes us in the next few months.
I remember when I was in America last year, I saw a quote from Steve Jobs who basically said all he did as CEO of Apple was surround himself with people who were more knowledgeable and better informed that he was. I’m in that really fortunate position with our central teams and leaders in schools. They are all our experts.
Jaina Walton will take on Dan’s role at Medtia with our Pathway learners and our youngsters moving into our community. Jaina doesn’t need a lot of introduction. She has taken Hollinwood through its first few years. She has overseen the growth from 50 children in its first year to well over 200 today. Last year Jaina also was the head when the school received an “outstanding” accolade from Ofsted. Jaina was keen to extend her skill set with a different group of learners. Again, I am certain that Jaina will strategically offer a fresh view and different perspective that builds upon our successes and drives our ambitions even higher.
On Friday the Governors and Trustees held interviews for the head at Hollinwood Academy and I’m delighted to be able to inform you that Laura Millard was successful. Many of you will be aware that Laura was Jaina’s deputy. She has been with the Trust for around 5 years and in that time has shown herself to be one of our shining stars. She’s hard working, knowledgeable, diligent and has a real passion for continuous improvement. Just our sort of leader.
As well as all that moving around, we’ve also had a really productive week “tweaking” our dashboard. After writing last week’s blog I reflected that our destination outcomes weren’t fit for purpose. Don’t get me wrong, they are great for our older learners in our schools but they have little relevance for our 5, 6 and 7 year olds. So, I asked a couple of key colleagues, Rachel from Hawthorns and Jenny from the central team, to reflect on the destination outcomes and make them relevant to all our children. Hopefully we can consult on their work in the next couple of weeks.
So that’s another week over. Have a great weekend,
Graham
You can find all Graham’s previous blog entries here
Location
New Bridge Multi Academy Trust
Roman Road
Hollinwood
Oldham
OL8 3PH
School Hours
Weekends: Closed
Phone & Email
0161 870 9386
info@newbridgegroup.org