Welcome

Welcome from James Roach our CEO

Welcome to the Inclusive Multi Academy Trust.

We were founded in 2016 with a straightforward belief: that many different types of people make up our community, and every single one of them deserves to be treated fairly and equally so that they and their families can access a great education. That belief sits at the heart of our mission, to foster a truly inclusive community where everyone has choice and belongs, and where every child, family and member of staff has the right to dignity and a decent life. It has not changed. It is still the reason we exist.

We are proud to be inclusive, and we mean that in the fullest sense of the word. Not inclusion as a policy document or a tick-box exercise, but inclusion as something you can feel when you walk into one of our schools. It means a child who arrived in England last month being welcomed into a classroom where they are not an anomaly but a valued part of the community. It means a parent who does not speak English confidently being spoken to with the same respect as anyone else. It means a child with SEND having their needs understood and met, not worked around. It means staff from the communities we serve being supported to lead and to thrive within them. And whilst we are inclusive of all, we are not exclusive of anyone. Every child, every family, every member of staff brings something to this community, and all of us are richer for the cultural tapestry we share.

That inclusive nature also makes us brave. We are willing to do things differently when it serves our community, and we make no apology for that. Becoming an academy trust was itself a bold decision, taken because we believed it was the right structure to give our schools the freedom and support they needed to thrive. That instinct, to ask what our community needs and then find the courage to pursue it, runs through everything we do. We are passionate, we are ambitious, and we are authentic. What you see is what you get.

Our four schools, Beechfield, Cherry Tree, Laurance Haines and Willow Tree, sit at the heart of Watford, one of the most diverse communities in England. Our children speak over 60 languages between them and arrive with different starting points, different experiences and different needs. We do not see that as complexity to manage. We see it as exactly what a school should reflect. In our schools, everyone belongs.

Whilst our schools work closely together, each one has its own personality, character and individual strengths. There is no blueprint for a school in the Inclusive Multi Academy Trust. We are a family of schools that share a philosophy. A family that shares a wealth of expertise across leaders, teachers and support staff. A family that works together for the benefit of all children. A family that together is stronger than the sum of its individual parts.

If you are a school exploring what partnership might look like, or someone who wants to work within the Trust, we would love to hear from you.

 

 ^{James Roach}

^{Chief Executive Officer}