Academy

Also called Academy trust, MAT, Multi-academy trust, Free school

A state school funded directly by government rather than through the council. It changes who you complain to.

What it is

An academy is a state-funded school run by an academy trust — a charitable company — under a funding agreement with the Department for Education, rather than being maintained by a local authority. A multi-academy trust runs several. A free school is an academy that was set up new.

Most secondary schools and a large share of primaries in England are now academies.

Where it applies

Anyone whose child attends one. It matters most when something goes wrong.

How it works

Academies have more freedom over the curriculum, term dates, staff pay and conditions. They must still follow the law on admissions, exclusions, SEND and safeguarding.

The practical difference is the complaint route. A maintained school's complaints go school → governing body → local authority. An academy's go school → local governing body → the trust → the Department for Education's ESFA. The council has no power to intervene.

SEND duties are unchanged: the council is still responsible for EHCPs at an academy.

What you can ask for

Ask whether the school is an academy and which trust runs it, before you complain about anything. It determines every step after the first.

Ask for the trust's complaints policy. It must be published, and its stages are the ones that count.

Ask who the admissions authority is — for an academy it is usually the trust itself, not the council.

Where to get help

Get Information About Schools on GOV.UK tells you a school's type and trust. The ESFA handles complaints about academies once the trust's own process is finished.