Academy Trust Handbook: changes from September 2023

Changes to the Academy Trust Handbook 2023 include looser requirements on sharing management accounts with your board, a higher threshold for related party transaction value before ESFA approval is necessary, and a new list of estates guidance to apply.

Last reviewed on 9 August 2023See updates
School types: AllSchool phases: AllRef: 37986
Contents
  1. Financial changes
  2. Leadership and governance changes
  3. The new board purpose descriptions
  4. More emphasis on trusts' responsibilities for estates safety and management
  5. Clarity on the reasons your trust might receive a 'notice to improve'

This article refers to the Academy Trust Handbook (ATH) 2023, which comes into effect on 1 September 2023. It breaks down the changes highlighted on page 7 of the handbook.

Financial changes

An extra month to submit your budget to the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA)

The new deadline, starting from this summer (2023), is the end of August rather than end of July (paragraph 2.15).

Your trust is no longer required to set financial KPIs

The requirement for a trust to select key financial performance indicators (financial KPIs) and regularly measure its performance against them has been removed from 'Part 2: main financial requirements' in the new ATH.  

This change wasn't listed in the DfE's list of updates (on page 7), so we contacted the DfE and a representative confirmed that this is no longer mandatory. 

ESFA approval isn't needed for related party