Our vision

At the Alpha Trust, our core purpose is to ensure that all of our children and young people have every opportunity to achieve excellent academic and personal outcomes.  The work that we all do at the Alpha Trust is focused on achieving this aim.  We want our children and young people to build resilience, become proud of who they are, take on responsibility, and grow respect for others.

We’re a small but growing Multi-Academy Trust.  The Trust was established by Headteachers who share the same personal values and educational ambitions for their young people.  We never stand still.  We are dynamic, innovative and highly successful. 

We have four secondary academies and one primary academy.  Our schools retain their own identity and autonomy, whilst having the opportunity to collaborate and learn from each other.  Our schools benefit from shared financial management, collaboration on purchasing and procurement, sharing resources, joint CPD and additional capital funding. 

We also incorporate:

We recognise that our staff are one of our greatest assets and we support our staff to focus on what matters to them most and to achieve their own personal goals.

You can read more about working for the Alpha Trust here.

Our values

Our core values are an expression of who we are:

Ambition

Commitment

Conscientiousness and diligence

Integrity and honesty

Empathy and compassion

Respect

Resilience

Optimism

Loyalty

We have high expectations of all of our students and staff in line with our values, and they guide us in reaching decisions and focusing on our priorities.

Our schools

Our Trust is responsible for the education of over 4,700 pupils across five schools based in Essex.

Our schools are:

  • Colchester County High School for Girls
  • The Gilberd School
  • Manningtree High School
  • Home Farm Primary School
  • The Trinity School

Our teaching and support staff work predominantly in one school but there are lots of opportunities for collaboration and joint working.  We also have professional staff working within our Trust central services.  We like to ‘grow our own’ and the Alpha Trust provides excellent career progression opportunities for staff who are keen to grow and develop.

We are committed to promoting equality of opportunity and recognise the value of a school workforce from a diverse range of backgrounds and circumstances with different skills and abilities. 

Working for us

We can offer a range of benefits and opportunities for our staff.

For teaching staff

  • Competitive salaries – our pay scales match the pay and allowances set out in the School Teachers Pay and Conditions document;
  • Annual pay awards from 1 September each year;
  • Membership of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme;
  • Full support for Early Career Teachers including a structured two-year package of training;
  • Access to experienced mentors and coaches;
  • A comprehensive package of Continuous Professional Development including leadership development pathways and access to National Professional Qualifications;
  • Opportunities for career development and progression both within schools and across the Alpha Trust;
  • Opportunities to develop your professional practice within a MAT which values research-informed learning;
  • Well-being support including a free Employee Assistance Programme offering support for issues at home and work; financial guidance; legal advice; and coaching for managers.
  • The opportunity to work with an outstanding group of schools and to benefit from outstanding Ofsted judgements.

For support staff

  • Competitive salaries – our pay scales match the National Joint Council pay scales;
  • Generous holiday entitlement:
  • For staff on Scale Point 22 and below – 25 days annual holiday entitlement increasing to 28 days after five years;
  • For staff on Scale Point 23 to 34 – 26 days annual holiday entitlement increasing to 29 days after five years;
  • For staff on Scale Point 35 and above – 27 days annual holiday entitlement increasing to 30 days after five years.
  • Annual pay awards from 1 September each year;
  • Membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme;
  • Term time working patterns available across a wide range of roles;
  • Continuous Professional Development including access to a range of training and learning opportunities;
  • Opportunities for career development and progression both within schools and across the Alpha Trust;
  • Well-being support including a free Employee Assistance Programme offering support for issues at home and work; financial guidance; legal advice; and coaching for managers.
  • The opportunity to work with an outstanding group of schools and to benefit from outstanding Ofsted judgements.