Hosted by Sarah Barton, CEO of Juniper Education, this episode of JoinIn features Ceri Jones, CEO of Inspires Multi-Academy Trust, for a candid conversation about leadership, culture, inclusion and the realities of turning around a trust.

Ceri begins by reflecting on how he fell into teaching and the children who shaped his approach to education. He and Sarah discuss why the sector is losing talented people, what keeps great teachers and leaders in education, and the story behind Chipping Hill becoming the number one primary school in East Anglia.

The conversation then turns to Ceri’s decision to take on a struggling multi-academy trust, including the reality he faced on day one: a significant deficit and the need for redundancies. He explains why culture had to come first, how trust and expectations were rebuilt, and what he learned about leading through difficult change.

Sarah and Ceri also explore inclusion and the challenge of reaching communities and children who can be hardest for the system to serve. Ceri shares his perspective on what genuinely inclusive education looks like and how schools can create the conditions for more children to succeed.

Drawing on his experience as an Ofsted inspector, Ceri also reflects on inspection, school improvement and what leaders can learn from seeing education from both sides of the process.

The episode closes with a listener question and a quick-fire round covering leadership, education and the lessons Ceri has picked up along the way.

Whether you’re a school leader, trust executive, governor, teacher or education professional, this episode offers an open and practical look at the realities of leading change in education.

00:00 Welcome and introductions
00:57 How Ceri fell into teaching and the children who shaped him
06:55 Why are we losing great people from education?
11:14 Chipping Hill: the number one primary in East Anglia
17:46 Taking on a struggling trust
22:56 Day one: a deficit and redundancies
26:26 Why start with culture
34:07 Inclusion and the hardest-to-reach communities
43:55 Life as an Ofsted inspector
52:49 Listener question, quick-fire round and closing thoughts

Hosted by Sarah Barton, CEO of Juniper Education, this episode of JoinIn features Owen Jenkins, CEO, and Samuel Thompson, CFO of Broad Horizons Education Trust, an 18-school, Norfolk-based trust spanning nurseries through to specialist residential SEMH academies.

We begin by exploring what it takes to build one organisation out of 18 schools, from the deliberate geography behind the trust's 2022 merger to the culture that binds it together: a shared "Utopia" vision and the guiding principle of continuous improvement with kindness. 

Owen and Samuel reflect on how their CEO/CFO partnership has developed since 2023, and how financial discipline, attendance, inclusion and attainment sit at the heart of their FAIR framework.

We then zoom out to the wider MAT landscape, weighing the opportunities that scale brings against the challenges of relentless policy change, before turning to the government's white paper and what it means for trust growth, funding certainty and long-term planning. Owen and Samuel share their honest first reactions, the questions still left unanswered, and why implementation, not intention, will be the real test.

The conversation also digs into how schools can join a trust without losing their identity, how Broad Horizons balances shared systems with local autonomy, and a candid discussion of SEND, prompted by Owen's recent piece asking whether the DfE should become the Department for Children again, and what it means that one in five children now identify with some level of need.

We close with a quick-fire round covering leadership advice, financial misconceptions about MATs, and where AI fits into the future of education.

Whether you're a school leader, trust executive, school business professional, teacher or education specialist, this episode offers a candid, practical look at what it really takes to lead a growing multi-academy trust.

Chapters

00:00 – Welcome to Join In: Meet Broad Horizons Education Trust
02:29 – The trust's vision and the CEO-CFO partnership
07:23 – Financial discipline, sector challenges and rethinking workload
17:06 – The Schools White Paper: Reactions and the case for MAT growth
27:21 – Growth without losing identity: Shared systems vs local autonomy
35:22 – SEND: Owen's Tes article and whether schools can solve it alone
42:13 – Listener question and quickfire round
46:11 – Closing thoughts and where to find Broad Horizons Trust

Hosted by Sarah Barton, CEO of Juniper Education, and George Gardiner, Chief Technology Officer, the first episode of JoinIn explores two of the biggest developments currently shaping education.

We begin by examining the government's proposed new framework for Management Information Systems (MIS), discussing what it could mean for schools, trusts, data ownership, interoperability and the future of joined-up technology.

We then unpack the key themes from the Every Child Achieving and Thriving white paper, including SEND reform, inclusion, attendance, belonging and workforce challenges.

Along the way, Sarah and George explore why connected data, integrated systems and a more joined-up approach to school improvement could play a crucial role in helping education leaders navigate the years ahead.

Whether you're a school leader, trust executive, school business professional, teacher or education specialist, this episode provides practical insight into the policy changes and strategic developments likely to shape the future of education.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

01:44 MIS Interoperability and connected systems

09:08 SEND and inclusion in the White Paper

18:06 Engagement, belonging and school improvement

34:09 Outro