Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether Multi-Academy Trust boards are permitted to redact minutes of board meetings that relate to the use of public funds; what guidance her Department issues on transparency and redaction of trust governance documents; and what assessment she has made of the adequacy of current practices.

The Academy Trust Governance Guide outlines that the trust board is responsible for being open and transparent about its decisions and actions. This guide is accessible at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academy-trust-governance-guide.

The Academy Trust Handbook and trust’s articles of association state that trusts must make available on request for inspection the agenda for board, local committees/governing bodies and committee meetings, approved minutes of each meeting, and any report, document or other paper considered at each meeting.

Trusts may exclude from its records material which, by reason of its nature, the trustees are satisfied should remain confidential, such as names of employees or pupils. The trust must comply with the Data Protection Act 2018 and UK General Data Protection Regulations.

To monitor financial oversight, trusts must submit an annual report and accounts in accordance with the Charity Commission’s Statement of Recommended Practice and the departments Accounts Direction to the department.

The requirements set out in the Academy Trust Handbook are reviewed annually.