The Shared Learning Trust

What The Shared Learning Trust does

The Shared Learning Trust, operating commercially as Advantage Schools, is a UK multi-academy trust and exempt educational charity managing ten schools across Bedfordshire: four secondary, five primary and one lower school. The trust's origin school, Bedford Free School, was established in 2012 by local teachers and parents; Elstow School joined in 2017, Queen's Park Academy in December 2021, Houstone School opened in Houghton Regis in September 2022, and Laburnum Primary School joined in March 2024. The trust is governed by a Board of Trustees and led by CEO Stuart Lock, operating as a single employer across its network. The core product is state-funded academic education delivered through individual academies, underpinned by a shared knowledge-based curriculum, structured behaviour routines and extra-curricular programming designed to prepare pupils for university progression.

Revenue is derived almost entirely from UK Department for Education per-pupil funding routed through local authorities, with no tuition fees charged to families and any surplus reinvested as a not-for-profit. Distribution is via the standard UK school admissions system, with the trust acting as admissions authority across Luton, Central Bedfordshire and Bedford; customer segments are pupils/families organised into secondary (ages 11-18), primary (ages 4-11) and lower-school cohorts. The trust has extended its offering commercially through AS Knowledge Exchange, a suite of external professional development products (Behaviour Hub, Attendance Hub, The Advantage Way, AS Core Induction, Specialist Courses, Leadership Courses, Recorded Sessions) targeting educators beyond the trust. Technology infrastructure is largely commodity: third-party integrations include Google Analytics, Google Maps, ParentPay, MyNewTerm (for recruitment), social media platforms, and standard publishing and video plugins; no proprietary technology stack or AI capability is disclosed.

Name

The Shared Learning Trust

Legal name

Advantage Schools

Website

https://advantageschools.co.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The Shared Learning Trust operates as Advantage Schools, a not-for-profit multi-academy trust running ten state-funded schools (four secondary, five primary, one lower) across Bedfordshire for pupils aged 4-18, funded by UK Department for Education per-pupil grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-12 Education (Multi-Academy Trust)

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Alternative/Pedagogical Model Private Schools (Project-Based, Democratic, etc.) (EDAJABAJ)

Keywords

• Multi-academy trust
• Primary school education
• Secondary school education
• State-funded education
• Teacher professional development

Headquarters

HQ city

Dunstable, England

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government Education Funding: As a multi-academy trust, the organization receives government funding from the Department for Education (DfE) to operate its schools. Revenue comes primarily through pupil-led funding formula based on student enrollment numbers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Shared Learning Trust (Advantage Schools) is a not-for-profit multi-academy trust operating ten state-funded schools across Bedfordshire — four secondary, five primary, and one lower school — providing free academic education to pupils in Luton, Central Bedfordshire, and Bedford. In addition to school operations, the trust runs the AS Knowledge Exchange, a professional development hub offering courses, the Behaviour Hub, the Attendance Hub, and The Advantage Way pedagogical framework to educators within and beyond the trust.

Product overview

The Shared Learning Trust operates as Advantage Schools, a multi-academy trust managing 10 schools (4 secondary, 5 primary, 1 lower school) across Bedfordshire. The core offering is academic education delivered through individual schools, each with its own identity and specialisms. Supporting the schools are professional development products under the AS Knowledge Exchange umbrella, including the Behaviour Hub, Attendance Hub, The Advantage Way pedagogical framework, AS Core Induction, Specialist Courses, Leadership Courses, and Recorded Sessions. The trust also offers its expertise externally through AS Knowledge Exchange courses to other schools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bedford Free School Secondary school set up in 2012 by local teachers and parents, offering a small family-feel school of around 500 pupils with a grammar-school style academic curriculum. Recognised as one of the highest performing secondary schools in the area.
• The Chalk Hills Academy Secondary school for ages 11-18 with world-class facilities, talented staff and innovative learning experiences, located in Luton.
• Houstone School Secondary school opened September 2022 in Houghton Regis, designed to be a grammar school for all with strong behaviour standards, academic curriculum and longer school days.
• The Stockwood Park Academy Secondary school in Luton focused on adding value to students' life chances, with values of Excellence, Responsibility, and Compassion.
• Elstow School Primary school joined in 2017 offering an enriched and academic curriculum with values of We Care, We Share, We do our best.
• The Linden Academy Primary school in Luton focused on putting children at the heart of everything, building resilience and supporting wellbeing.
• Laburnum Primary School Small, friendly one-form entry primary school in Sandy, joined Advantage Schools in March 2024, at the heart of the local community.
• The Rushmere Park Academy Primary school and nursery in Leighton Buzzard with values centred on STRIVE, ACHIEVE & BELIEVE, providing quality education for the whole child.
• Queen's Park Academy Primary school joined Advantage Schools in December 2021, serving a diverse international community in Bedford with focus on being kind, safe and ready to learn.
• The Vale Academy Lower school in Dunstable providing education to challenge minds, motivate hearts and inspire creativity, fostering belonging within the community.
• AS Knowledge Exchange Professional development hub offering courses, behaviour support, attendance resources and professional learning materials for educators within and outside the trust.

Quantifiable outcome

• Bedford Free School described as one of the highest performing secondary schools in the area and in the country
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration13 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Laburnum Primary SchoolminorOthers · 1 March 2024Laburnum Primary School in Sandy joined Advantage Schools in March 2024 with a view to becoming a local centre of excellence, delivering high quality education through effective classroom learning and wider enrichment experiences.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• United Learning: One of the largest UK multi-academy trusts, operating a national network of both state-funded academies and independent schools. Directly comparable as a UK MAT operating at scale with a mix of primary and secondary provision and shared central services.
• Academies Enterprise Trust (AET): One of the largest UK multi-academy trusts with a national footprint of primary and secondary academies. A broad incumbent comparable for scale, central services and academy conversion track record.
• Cognita Schools: An international schools group operating a portfolio of primary and secondary schools. Comparable as a multi-academy-style operator with shared services and centralised curriculum/PD functions.
• Harris Federation: A large UK multi-academy trust running primary and secondary academies, predominantly in London and the South East. Comparable as an academy trust with a central professional development function and a track record of growing pupil rolls through conversions.
• GEMS Education: A global K-12 schools operator with both premium and mainstream offerings. Comparable as a multi-school operator running academies with shared curriculum and central professional development infrastructure.

Direct peers

• Ormiston Academies Trust: A UK multi-academy trust operating a comparable footprint of primary and secondary academies with shared services and shared curriculum frameworks. A close functional analogue to Advantage Schools' model of running multiple Bedfordshire academies from a central trust.
• Kemnal Academies Trust: A UK multi-academy trust running secondary and primary academies across the South East. Comparable as a regional UK MAT with shared services and a focus on knowledge-rich curricula.
• Aspirations Academy Trust: A UK multi-academy trust operating a portfolio of primary and secondary academies with an external-facing professional development offer. Comparable in network structure and the sale/distribution of educator CPD.
• Academy Transformation Trust: A UK academy trust operating a network of primary and secondary schools with central professional development and a focus on academy improvement. Comparable in scale and operational structure to Advantage Schools.
• Reach2 Academy Trust: One of the largest UK primary-focused multi-academy trusts. Comparable for the primary-school-heavy portion of Advantage Schools' portfolio (5 of 10 schools) and its primary-centric approach to MAT-level curriculum design.

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/advschools
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-shared-learning-trust

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Shared Learning Trust