STAFF from all three members of South Cumbria Multi-Academy Trust marked a new era for education at the start of the academic year.

Around 150 staff, including teachers and support staff, from Chetwynde, Ormsgill and Vickerstown schools, took part in an induction session led by education expert Caroline Vernon, director of Northstar Education Consultancy.

Caroline spoke to the staff explaining each school will bring their own strengths to SCMAT and the next steps will be to plan joint working on priority areas for further improvement.

They were welcomed to the Trust by Professor Andrew Wren who is CEO and Executive Headteacher of the SCMAT, led by Furness College.

He said: “We have superb heads and superb teams and I can’t wait to see what we can achieve together,” he said. “This is the start of a new era for education in South Cumbria and we are thrilled to have you on board and listen to your ideas.”

Staff took part in group sessions at the event at Furness College, including an icebreaker and gave feedback on how they would like to see SCMAT have an impact.

They also met new staff including Chief Finance Officer Ian Harris and Operations Manager Sue Harkins-Andrews who are part of the central services team.

The South Cumbria Multi-Academy Trust was launched in September 2021 with Chetwynde school as its founding member and an aim to strengthen education across the area.

Member schools retain their own individuality and benefit from expertise among partners, access to facilities at the college’s £47million Channelside campus and outstanding shared services including finance, human resources, estates and health and safety.

David Holmes, headteacher of Vickerstown School which is set to formally join the Trust this term, said there had been a real buzz around the welcome event, which included an icebreaker so the staff could get to know each other.

He said: “It was great to be here and to see the new people smiling and laughing together and there was a real feeling of positivity around the whole room.”