Trustees have a duty to promote the success of the charity and, in doing so, are required by section 172(1) of the Companies Act 2006 to have regard to (among other matters) the issues set out below.
S172(1) (a) “The likely consequences of decisions in the long-term”
GDST Council (comprising our Trustees) identifies and monitors the major risks to which the GDST is exposed and ensures that action is taken to mitigate them. The management of these risks is subject to regular review and monitoring by the GDST Senior Management Team and by the Audit Committee.
The Executive Board has delegated authority for the systems and procedures for managing both strategic and operational risks. The risks and actions being undertaken to mitigate these risks are reviewed annually by GDST Council, with more in-depth scrutiny undertaken by the Audit Committee at each meeting. The Audit Committee also reviews departmental risk registers annually. In addition, a nominated Trustee attends the Trust’s Health & Safety Committee meetings, and another Trustee is the Council’s appointed Safeguarding Lead.
The key controls in place at Trust Office and in the schools include:
- Policies and procedures to ensure regulatory compliance and the adoption of best practice, including those required by law to protect the vulnerable.
- Detailed terms of reference for all committees.
- Formal agendas for Council, Committee and School Governing Board meetings.
- Comprehensive strategic planning, budgeting and management accounting.
- Schemes of delegation, formal financial regulations and systems of internal control.
- Clear authorisation and approval levels.
- An internal audit function reporting directly to the Audit Committee, a sub-committee of Council.
- Expert advice and support from professional Trust Office teams including HR, Finance, Estates, Legal, Health & Safety and Communications.
- Council is satisfied that the major risks identified have been adequately mitigated where necessary and to the extent possible.
S172(1) (b) “The interests of the charity’s employees”
The GDST Council (comprising our Trustees) recognises that GDST employees are fundamental and core to the charity and the delivery of our strategic aims. The success of the GDST depends on attracting, retaining, developing and empowering skilful employees. GDST Council considers and assesses the implications of relevant decisions on employees and the wider GDST family. GDST Council seeks to ensure that the GDST remains a responsible employer, including with respect to pay and benefits, equality, diversity and wellbeing, health and safety issues, and the workplace environment.
Employee engagement
The GDST provides staff with information relevant to the progress of the charity through the Heads and the Chief Executive. Schools, academies and Trust Office hold regular all-staff meetings and other sessions to brief staff on developments. A workforce agreement is in place, with Staff Consultative Committees in schools and Trust-wide representation on the Joint Consultative Group.
The GDST recognises the National Education Union (NEU) for the purposes of consultation on staff issues. The GDST participates in an annual survey to measure employee engagement.
Disabled employees
Full and fair consideration is given to applications for employment from registered disabled persons, with due regard to their aptitudes and abilities. Disabled employees are accorded equal opportunities for training, career development and promotion. Sympathetic consideration is given to the retention of a newly disabled employee, allowing, if necessary, for a period of rehabilitation and training.
S172(1) (c) “The need to foster the charity’s relationships with third-party stakeholders, including pupils, parents, partner state schools, alumnae, donors and funders, contractors and suppliers, independent school organisations and national and local government”
Delivering GDST’s strategic aims requires strong, mutually beneficial relationships with our third-party stakeholders, including parents, pupils, partner state schools, alumnae, donors and funders, contractors and suppliers, independent school organisations and national and local government. We seek to promote and apply certain general principles in such relationships including fairness, transparency and respect, and continually assess the priorities related to our third-party stakeholders.
- Pupils – At the GDST we foster academic excellence and develop character beyond the curriculum, ensuring our 19,000 pupils are confident, resilient and fearless. We encourage our pupils to embrace every role and subject and, as a result, they trust their own abilities and are alive to every opportunity.
- Parents – Parents place their trust in us for the education of their We never take for granted the fact that they have made a choice to invest in their daughter’s education, and we remain very grateful that they choose to do so.
- Partner state schools – The GDST understands the power of partnership and the benefits it can bring, not just to our girls but to our staff and the wider local community. We highly value the collaborative work that takes place between GDST schools and partner state schools to help raise aspirations and foster community cohesion, particularly in disadvantaged areas.
- Alumnae – Being a GDST alumna offers endless opportunities. From mentoring to professional networking, self-development and social events, the network offers a community unlike any other.
- Donors and funders – Our supporters are vital members of the GDST community and we strive to provide the best experience for them as The GDST is registered with the Fundraising Regulator and therefore all of our central and individual school fundraising activities are carried out in accordance with the standards set out by the Code of Fundraising Practice.
- Contractors and suppliers – There are regular reviews of major suppliers’ performance to ensure the operational needs of GDST schools and central functions are being met, alongside suitable governance practices within contractor and supplier operations.
- Independent school organisations – The GDST is proud to be a founder member of the International Coalition of Girls’ Schools (ICGS) and participates in their annual conferences, as well as other We also liaise with and are members of other relevant bodies and organisations, including the ISC, GSA, HMC, ISBA and AGBIS.
- National and local government – When appropriate, the GDST has contact with local authorities and politicians on pertinent issues.
Comprehensive updates on a variety of topics that indicate how these stakeholders have been engaged are presented to GDST Council across the year. These include: significant operational updates relating to each area of the business, e.g. partnerships and outreach, investments, flagship projects, commercial highlights and achievements; ii) the development of new business systems and innovation via collaborations with partners, suppliers and others; and iii) external, political or regulatory developments.
S172(1) (d) “The impact of the charity’s operations on the community and the environment”
Community impact
Every day, as throughout our history, the GDST is driven by our mission to reach as many girls as possible. Central to this mission is providing access to an outstanding education for girls from all backgrounds and all walks of life. We do this by ensuring that a GDST education remains as affordable as possible for families who wish to give their daughter an all-girls’ education in one of our schools; through supporting bright and ambitious young women via our leading bursary and financial assistance programmes; and by working with our schools and like-minded individuals and organisations to extend our reach way beyond our schools’ walls and into local communities and beyond.
Environmental impact
As the largest educator of girls in the UK, the GDST has an important role to play in championing a brighter, more sustainable future. A focus on sustainability runs through everything we do at the GDST. Our students and staff are passionate about making a positive difference and dedicated to achieving a sustainable world. In 2022, we reaffirmed our commitment and harmonised our work on sustainability under the ethos – One World, One Future, One Chance. Under our One GDST strategy, we united the many campaigns started by our students as well as the work we lead on across the GDST and set out our ambitious targets for the future at every level of the organisation.
The GDST continues to expand our work toward increasing the energy efficiency and energy savings across our organisation. Some key highlights over the 2022- 2023 academic year include: LED light replacement; net-zero new buildings; solar PV installations; an estate-wide decarbonisation strategy; procurement of renewable electricity; education and behavioural initiatives, as well as the organisation being certified as CarbonNeutral.
S172(1) (e) “The desirability of the charity maintaining a reputation for high standards of business conduct”
The GDST is both a charity and a limited company. Charity and company law determine how we operate and define the roles of our Trustees and executive staff.
The GDST Council (comprising our Trustees) sets our strategic direction, and has overall responsibility for the GDST: ensuring the safety and welfare of pupils, safeguarding its financial viability and control, and fulfilling employers’ duties owed to GDST staff. Council oversees educational policy, approves budgets and fees, and authorises building and capital development programmes. It currently has 10 members and meets between six and eight times a year.
The principal roles of the GDST Council are:
- To set the GDST’s strategy.
- To monitor our performance against key performance indicators such as academic achievement.
- To maintain the financial stability of the GDST.
- To ensure the Trust has policies and procedures that provide for adequate internal control and mitigate risk.
During 2022–2023, the Council delegated some of its responsibilities to four committees:
- Audit – this committee’s role is one of oversight, assessment and review of the controls and procedures which management has put in place in order to gain assurance that GDST finances are prudently and effectively managed and that financial and non-financial risks are identified and mitigated.
- Senior Appointments & Remuneration – sets the appropriate policy frameworks and processes for appointment panels, appoints Heads on behalf of the Council, provides oversight and governance on issues of appointment and remuneration, and reviews HR policies.
- Investments – oversees the GDST’s investments strategy and monitors the performance of the Trust’s investments, property and cash deposits.
- Estates – provides strategic oversight on matters relating to the Trust’s estate.
Each Committee consists of up to four Council members, and external committee members may be appointed to complement their range of expertise. The Council may also set up task groups when appropriate.
There are also two operational committees, both of which have a nominated Trustee in attendance:
- Safeguarding – oversees the monitoring and reviews of the effectiveness and implementation of the GDST’s safeguarding policy and procedures.
- Health & Safety – responsible for monitoring the effectiveness of the GDST’s health & safety policy and strategy, and its implementation at all levels across the Trust
The Council delegates the day-to-day management of the GDST to the Chief Executive and the Senior Management Team. The Senior Management Team meets regularly to discuss and decide on matters delegated to them by Council.
The Council and the Senior Management Team are committed to ensuring that the GDST’s governance structures and processes are of the highest standards, and the ways these arrangements are working are reviewed annually by the Council.
GDST Academy Trust
The GDST Academy Trust is responsible for the two academies in our network of schools. As sponsor, the GDST appoints the majority of the GDST Academy Trust Board, and it is chaired by a GDST Council member. Trustees include the Chairs of the academies’ local governing boards and others drawn for their skills and experience.
School Governing Boards
Each of the GDST’s schools has a local School Governing Board, whose members provide an invaluable mixture of support and challenge to the Heads of their schools, as well as being vital links between the school, its pupils, supporters and their local communities. We are very grateful for their contribution and commitment.
S172(1) (f) “The need to act fairly in achieving the charity’s purpose”
The GDST remains wholly committed to the same charitable purpose our trailblazing founders had 150 years ago, to reach as many girls as possible, empowering them through an excellent all-girls’ education.
As a charity, we seek to benefit the public through the pursuit of our objectives and aims, as set out in the Trust’s Articles of Association.
The charitable aim of the GDST is to advance the education of young people (principally girls but, where the Council think fit, also boys) by such means as the Council shall determine and in particular by the provision of:
- Schools in the United Kingdom or elsewhere.
- Services (including support services) to other educational charities, schools and institutions.
- Other ancillary or incidental educational activities.
- Other associated activities for the benefit of the community.
It is the opinion of the Trustees that, in exercising their powers, they have complied with their duty to have regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the Charity Commission when exercising powers or duties to which the guidance is relevant.
Fundraising
GDST Trust Office and GDST schools employ professional in-house fundraisers. They fundraise within the Code of Fundraising Practice and comply with the standards set by the Fundraising Regulator. To protect vulnerable people and others from unreasonable intrusion on their privacy, unreasonably persistent approaches or undue pressure to give, we have guidelines for fundraising involving vulnerable people and a fundraising complaints procedure. No formal complaints were received about any GDST fundraising activity, and there has been no failure to comply with the Code of Fundraising Practice. The Trust Office Philanthropy Team report on fundraising at every Council meeting.
