Plymouth CAST has been issued with a financial notice to improve by the Education and Skills Funding Agency over concerns about “weak financial management and inadequate governance”.

The multi-academy trust, which runs 36 Catholic schools in the South West and is one of the largest in the country, must produce a plan for how it will achieve a surplus and make staffing efficiencies.

In the notice to improve, the ESFA says it has concerns “in relation to the weak financial management and inadequate governance at the trust”. 

The letter serves as a notice “to improve financial management, control and governance at the trust”, and “reflects the weak financial position of the trust and continued concerns around governance and oversight of financial management by the board”. 

Under the notice, financial transactions will have to come to the ESFA for approval.

The letter requires that the trust has “to prepare and submit an action plan setting out the steps it will take to address the issues identified by the independent reviews of governance and financial management, pupil premium and safeguarding”. 

Financial recovery plan

It must submit a revised financial recovery plan, setting out how it will achieve “a cumulative surplus position by the end of August 2020”.

The trust also has to submit a “clear efficiency and savings plan” setting out “where further savings can be made to include further staffing efficiencies resulting in no more than 82 per cent of income being spent on staffing across the trust by September 2020, with a further reduction by September 2021”.  

It has to implement “new financial management and monitoring structures” to ensure “all trustees are aware of their responsibilities as directors” and that “effective processes are in place for the trust to monitor financial performance and the financial risks to its operation”.    

If Plymouth CAST fails to comply with the terms of the notice, it could have its funding agreement terminated.

Tes contacted Plymouth CAST for comment.

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