The Laidlaw Schools Trust

UID 3677·Companies House 05735093·Incorporated March 2006·Compare

Schools

Flags

5 high severity

Finance: 2024/25Ofsted: Nov 2024Performance: 2025/26Workforce: 2025/26Attendance: 2025/26

Total income

£54.8m

6,770 pupils

Avg staff costs

71.1%

of income

Avg reserves

14.1%

of income

Avg absence

7.1%

Persistent: 20.2%

More metrics

Avg FSM

43.0%

free school meals

Capacity

91%

6,770 / 7,421 places

Trust overview

2 of 11 schools have reserves below the DfE's 5% minimum.

2 of 11 schools had expenditure exceeding income this year.

Overall absence is above the national average in 40% of schools (4 of 10).

4 schools have persistent absence above 20%.

91% of inspected schools are rated Good or Outstanding across sub-judgements.

Reference points from DfE published guidance. Whether any metric warrants action depends on the trust's context and strategy.

At a glance

Trust-wide reserves at 20.5%above 20%Last accounts filed 19 months ago3 schools with absence above 8%1 school with declining results3 schools with workforce pressure1 school in deficit1 school with Ofsted concerns

Ofsted sub-judgements

Quality of education

88% Good+

Outst. 1Good 6RI 1

Behaviour & attitudes

100% Good+

Outst. 1Good 7

Personal development

100% Good+

Outst. 2Good 6

Leadership & management

100% Good+

Outst. 3Good 8

Performance (trust avg)

Key Stage 4

Attainment 8

39.6

-6.6

vs national

Key Stage 2

Expected standard (RWM)

65.9%

+4.9pp

vs national

National averages: 2023/24

Trust details

AddressSt Nicholas Building, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 1RF

Companies House05735093

Incorporated8 March 2006

Trust growth over time

matpulse.co.uk

Schools Pupils

Year	Schools	Pupils	Total income	Total expenditure	Avg staff costs %	Avg reserves %
2021/22	11	6,793	£49.3m	£48.2m	72.5%	17.8%
2022/23	11	6,774	£53.2m	£50.5m	70.0%	19.1%
2023/24	11	6,770	£54.8m	£53.3m	71.1%	14.1%
2024/25partial	11	6,676	—	—	—	—

Central services — 2023/24

Centralisation

7.4%

of total trust spend

Typical MAT centralisation ranges from 3-7% of total trust spend. Figures below 2% may indicate limited central coordination; above 10% warrants review of value for money.

CS expenditure

£4,269,000

CS staff costs

£3,079,000

CS income

£5,496,000

Admin & clerical£2,442,000

Teaching staff£410,000

ICT£0

Premises£153,000

Legal & professional£284,000

Auditor costs£55,000

Governance

Accounts to Aug 2024Source: Companies House

9 current directors · Average tenure: 3.2 years · 6 changes in last 12 months

Directors / Trustees (9)

Katie Stevens

director·< 1 year

Paul Richard Farrow

director·< 1 year

Nalini Claris D'cruz

director·< 1 year

David Roy Sandbach

director·2 years

Paul Guy Foster

director·3 years

Geoffrey Edmund Orfeur Stanford

director·4 years

Delinda Virginia Julia Conlon

director·5 years

Paul Andrew West

director·5 years

Susanna Victoria Kempe

director·6 years

Company Secretary

Rebecca Tills

secretary·1 year

19 former officers — most recent departure: Mar 2026

Peter Robson

secretary·1 year·Resigned Nov 2024

Nicki Clark

director·2 years·Resigned Dec 2023

Nic Palmarini

director·2 years·Resigned Mar 2026

Nichola Stefanou

director·3 years·Resigned Jul 2024

Louisa Jane Doyle

secretary·4 years·Resigned May 2024

Lesley Jane Boyle

Member schools (11)

11 schools|7 with risk flags|4 high severity

School	URN	Phase	Risk flags
Academy 360	145477	All-through	high absence
Atkinson Road Primary Academy	138212	Primary	—
Beacon of Light School	142882	Not applicable	workforce pressure
Excelsior Academy	135423	All-through	ofsted concernhigh absence
Oxclose Community Academy	138923	Secondary	high absence
Oxclose Primary Academy	140684	Primary	workforce pressure
Sedgefield Community College	147670	Secondary	—
Sedgefield Hardwick Primary Academy	149225	Primary	—
South Hylton Primary Academy	144447	Primary	workforce pressureperformance decline
Thomas Walling Primary Academy	140788	Primary	in year deficit
Westgate Hill Primary Academy	144970	Primary	—