Vision for the Kenilworth Multi Academy Trust
Young people in KMAT Schools.
In the Kenilworth Multi Academy Trust, students are happy in our schools because of our focus on nurturing their well-being and mental health so that they can reach their full potential. They enjoy their learning and have a strong sense of belonging within their communities, which helps them to flourish and succeed. All of our young people, irrespective of prior attainment, individual needs, or socio-economic and cultural background, celebrate their differences and the unique contribution of their peers. We broaden horizons and embrace diversity by enabling every individual to be inclusive of others, encouraging collaboration and partnerships across a wider socio-economic and ethnic profile beyond their base school.
Our young people are at the heart of everything we do, and their success is founded on the partnership between home and school. Working in tandem with parents and carers, we aim to understand every child and their character, knowing when to spot changes in character or behaviour that may require early intervention and additional help to ensure that every child can succeed. Inspirational learning experiences, extensive enrichment opportunities, effective pastoral support and enhanced parental/carer engagement all contribute to high levels of student participation, attendance and good behaviour. Our students are ambitious to be the best they can be and use their independence and thirst for learning to excel
Our students have equal opportunities to participate in core enrichment activities within their school and across KMAT during the timetabled day, including opportunities for leadership and character development. Those who are eligible for pupil premium funding and bursaries are supported to access enhanced enrichment and additional experiences that widen their cultural capital.
When they leave school, our students are equipped with the skills to be successful in higher education or employment. Our young people are proud of their school and the KMAT. They are encouraged to take risks, challenge themselves to volunteer for positions of responsibility and undertake new activities which may be ‘outside of their comfort zone’. By learning from mistakes, they become more resilient, reason well and are adaptive to change. Their education provides them with the flexibility to compete for jobs and future positions that may not yet exist.
KMAT Schools and our Values
The Kenilworth Multi Academy Trust has a unique identity and our commitment to inclusive practice runs through all of our schools. Our strapline is ‘Aspiring to excellence, through quality, ambition and independence’ and each school within the trust is encouraged to create and promote its own values. The KMAT has a suite of trust-wide policies, and alongside this, individual schools have school-based policies which reflect individual communities. Each school has its individual strengths and unique selling points and benefits from the resources and expertise of the trust to provide the best environment for students and staff alike.
As a trust committed to full inclusion, every child including those with specialist needs and disabilities have the right to access education in a school within their local community. Our staff work hard to narrow gaps between pupil groups and ensure that both on-site and external specialist provision are used effectively so that pupils with SEND and those who are vulnerable can thrive.
Our schools are relentlessly focused on improving attendance so that it exceeds the national average, and the trust will support them to unlock potential and explore new ways to achieve this.
We are proud to be a small, local trust rooted in Kenilworth and the south-west of Coventry. Our ambition is to provide high-quality education across both primary and secondary phases, while remaining outward-looking and focused on what is best for the communities we serve. The trust is financially secure and uses its resources carefully to strengthen facilities and provision across our schools, helping them to remain resilient, sustainable and able to shape their own future despite the economic pressures facing schools with smaller budgets.
The Curriculum in KMAT Schools
We are united in our commitment to narrowing gaps in educational attainment between the most advantaged and disadvantaged young people through a curriculum that is adapted to their needs. Our education stimulates a passion for independent learning and the development of broader life skills, such as reasoning, reflection, resilience, and teamwork. The curriculum intent in each of our schools allows for flexibility to adapt provision to meet the needs of its learners.
In KMAT schools, we emphasise the importance of a broad education that is more ambitious than the national curriculum, developing cultural capital and knowledge beyond that which is examinable.
The curriculum in all of our schools prioritises the interrelationship between learning that engages young people, the development of character, healthy minds and the balance between academic study and the pursuit of wider non-academic interests. Students have access to new curriculum opportunities as they progress through their education.
Because our schools are located close to one another and share resources effectively, students benefit from a broader curriculum through joint courses delivered across different sites and through online provision. Teachers and leaders work hard to ensure that learning remains accessible for students who face significant barriers to attending school in person.
The trust promotes innovation and best practice encouraging all staff and students to use technology to enhance teaching and learning. Our curriculum allows students to use their independent study advancing their learning with tools such as Artificial Intelligence.
Curriculum resources are pooled across KMAT to create enhanced opportunities for students. Our post-16 offer provides a wide range of choices, enabling students to remain within KMAT schools and attracting others from local schools. It is broad, academically rigorous and shaped by the collective expertise and specialist knowledge of teachers across our schools. Shared curriculum resources with primary schools also help pupils to prepare for the greater independence, organisation and subject breadth they will encounter on entry to secondary education.
All courses are cost effective, providing good value for money, and avoiding duplication of provision across the KMAT. Alternative non-A level provision enables all students from year 11, including those who are SEND, to access suitable choices if they do not meet entry criteria for A level courses.
A central careers offer strengthens the curriculum by linking learning to future pathways, building strong connections with employers and further and higher education, and helping learners develop employability skills. All students across KMAT receive personal guidance to support informed choices at post-16 and post-18. The Gatsby benchmarks are embedded throughout the curriculum and wider enrichment.
As a small Multi Academy Trust we provide excellent transition through all key stages from primary to secondary and beyond in a society that is diverse and inclusive.
KMAT Staff
Teaching and learning are strong across our schools and are underpinned by high-quality professional development for teachers and support staff at every stage of their careers. This creates a skilled, motivated workforce committed to educating all young people in a spirit of genuine collaboration, including across KMAT schools beyond their home setting. Many of our expert teachers also contribute to the development of the profession by training graduates and new recruits.
Shared resources allow all staff to share best practice and embrace technological advances in education such as generative Artificial Intelligence to meet the needs of everyone and improve overall efficiency or workload.
We build on nationally awarded accreditations and professional qualifications to develop and integrate system leadership and school improvement, across our schools or in partnerships beyond the Trust.
The KMAT Central Team is visible and on hand to support leaders in maintaining a strong focus on the quality of education and safeguarding, while providing expert advice in HR, Finance, IT, Health and Safety, Careers and Compliance, School Improvement and Governance. Our school improvement service gives secondary heads ongoing, bespoke support from trained professionals in areas such as leadership development, governance, teaching and learning, SEND, behaviour and safeguarding. Our school improvement offer for primaries has been developed in collaboration with the trust and local primary schools, enabling access to high-quality professional development for leaders, teachers and support staff. As the trust continues to grow, we will retain and develop our best staff by providing distinctive leadership opportunities through secondments and professional qualifications.
In addition to an extensive CPD programme, we incentivise our workforce with a range of initiatives for staff well-being and occupational support packages and other benefits within our KMAT People Strategy.
We know that the vast majority of our staff members feel proud to work in our schools. They feel valued, say that behaviour in school is good and confirm that their schools are safe communities.
KMAT and The Wider Community
Excellent partnerships exist with the local community, local authorities, the DfE, local charities and other educational providers to maximise provision for children within KMAT schools.
The trust is committed to increasing use of our facilities beyond the school day and to developing our schools as community hubs, with provision accessible to local users and greater flexibility for staff through benefits that support work-life balance and family-friendly practices.
In line with our commitment to inclusive communities, we will use trust reserves, where appropriate, and explore grant funding or community fundraising initiatives to create additional spaces for children with special educational needs who may struggle to access limited specialist provision in large school settings. This will include quiet reflection and study spaces for pupils with specific auditory needs, particularly where schools are at risk of overcrowding.
As KMAT grows through the late 2020s, we will strengthen our long-term estates planning so that investment in buildings and facilities is equitable, strategic and aligned to future need. By securing additional capital and trust-wide resources, we will work to
ensure that every school offers a high standard of accommodation and learning environment for every child. Our ambition is that no school is left behind, with some benefiting from modern facilities while others fall behind in older or less suitable buildings. Instead, we will future-proof our schools through a planned, trust-wide approach that delivers consistency, quality and equity across the estate.
Trustees and Executive leaders will also explore the option to bid to sponsor a brand new school in the locality if there is sufficient local demand and this may free up space within any of its schools.
Students benefit from the involvement of local business partners through a range of opportunities within and across schools to widen participation into higher education and to broaden awareness of opportunities for apprenticeships and employment. Partnerships with business and industry, both nationally and internationally, provide new experiences for students and teachers to understand the importance of skills for employability. Our employer database allows students access to a wider range of work-related opportunities beyond the immediate locality of their school.
KMAT and our schools place a high value on working proactively to develop sustainable solutions and environmental awareness. A climate action plan for our schools demonstrates our commitment to protecting the planet and galvanising the collective efforts of everyone to challenge and review our established routines and working practices.
KMAT will continue to work closely with all local primary schools to support strong transition to our secondary schools. Our revised offer will be open to all primary schools whose pupils progress into KMAT secondary provision, whether or not they wish to join the trust. This will include a staged alliance model, from affiliated membership through to full membership, with access to trust services increasing at each stage. Schools that join KMAT fully will benefit from the complete trust offer, while affiliated schools will be able to access a more limited range of services.
KMAT Governance
Governance and executive leadership work in close partnership to set clear direction for each school and ensure that local priorities remain aligned with the trust’s wider vision. Trustees are ambitious for the future of KMAT, maintaining financial resilience, responding proactively to change and positioning the trust for sustainable growth. Together, trustees and governors bring a breadth of experience from across the community and provide strategic oversight that keeps our work outward-facing, values-led and firmly focused on equity, inclusion and high standards for all young people.
Executive leaders take a strategic approach to securing equitable, high-quality facilities across all settings. They monitor demographic trends, policy developments and local priorities so that estates planning remains responsive, sustainable and aligned to future need. Trustees provide constructive challenge and support, ensuring that our plans for growth are ambitious, well considered and regularly reviewed so that our schools remain fit for purpose both now and in the years ahead.
Governors and trustees hold school leaders and executive leaders rigorously to account for the quality of education, inclusion, financial stewardship and staff well-being. The trust invests in high-quality training so that governors and trustees remain well informed, up to date and able to evaluate the impact of decision-making with confidence. Through this strong culture of informed challenge and support, they help to embed KMAT’s values across all schools, secure best value and sustain positive outcomes for young people over time.
Local governing bodies are directly connected to the Board of Trustees through the KMAT Education Committee, ensuring that the perspectives and needs of each school inform trust-wide decision-making. This structure strengthens accountability across every tier of governance and enables trustees and governors to understand, with clarity, the opportunities and challenges of leadership in a growing cross-phase trust.
Hayden Abbott
CEO of KMAT
June 2026
(This update includes the contributions of trustees, local governors, Headteachers and executive leaders of KMAT at a strategic workshop in May 2026)
