Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust

What Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust does

Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust (ODST) is a state-funded Multi-Academy Trust (MAT) and registered charitable company in England, established in July 2012 by the Oxford Diocesan Board of Education (ODBE) to serve as an academy sponsor vehicle for schools in the Diocese of Oxford. It operates 43 primary, infant, junior and middle schools across Oxfordshire and Berkshire, organised into five geographic hubs (Oxford, West Oxfordshire, Southern Arc, North Oxfordshire, Thames) and serving over 8,000 pupils with approximately 1,500 school-based staff and a 53-person central team headquartered at St Mary's Convent, Wantage.

ODST's core offering is a centralised bundle of services delivered to its member schools: school improvement support via experienced advisers, operations support (model policies, compliance audits, insurance, legal, health & safety via Smartlog, crisis management, premises and procurement), finance support (budgeting, monitoring, integrated software, SBM networks), CPD and professional development (leadership conferences, subject networks, SEND networks, NPQ delivery across 18 regional centres in partnership with the Chartered College of Teaching), Early Career Teacher networks, governance support (GovernorHub, training, briefings, admissions authority role), and data protection/GDPR services. Schools retain their individual identities and community character but rely on the trust for back-office, regulatory, and improvement infrastructure.

ODST generates revenue almost entirely through per-pupil government funding routed via the National Funding Formula to each academy, supplemented by grants, SEN top-ups, and income from the trust's NPQ delivery programme. It has no commercial pricing model — education is free at the point of delivery — and no private-equity, venture-capital, or external ownership; governance rests with a board of trustees chaired by Kathy Winrow MBE, with the Oxford Diocesan Board of Education as a Trust Member. Growth has been capacity-managed rather than aggressive: from one founding school in 2012 to 43 in 2025, with two further schools (Ranelagh and Jennett's Park) announced for transfer from Bonitas MAT in October 2025. Leadership transitioned in September 2025 when Sharon Mullins succeeded founder-CEO Anne Dellar.

Name

Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust

Legal name

Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust

Website

https://odst.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust is a state-funded Multi-Academy Trust operating 43 church and community primary schools across Oxfordshire and Berkshire, serving 8,000+ pupils with centralised school improvement, operations, finance, and governance services delivered through five regional hubs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Multi-Academy Trust Education Services

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based (Religious) K–12 Schools (EDAJABAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Compliance, Risk & Audit Support Services (EHS, Title IX/Clery Support, Policy Admin) (EDAEALAK)

Keywords

• Multi-academy trust
• Primary school education
• School improvement services
• Church school governance
• Academy trust operations

Headquarters

HQ city

Wantage

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government School Funding: ODST receives per-pupil government funding for each academy in the trust. This is the primary revenue stream that funds school operations, staff salaries, and educational delivery across all member schools.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust (ODST) operates as a Multi-Academy Trust (MAT) running 43 church and community primary schools across Oxfordshire and Berkshire. The trust delivers free state-funded education to over 8,000 pupils and supplies centralized support services to its member schools, including school improvement advisory work, finance, HR, operations, governance, CPD/professional development, and admissions services. Schools are organized into five geographic hubs to enable localized collaboration while benefiting from trust-wide resources.

Product overview

Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust operates as a Multi-Academy Trust (MAT) providing a comprehensive suite of educational and administrative services to its family of over 40 schools. The trust's core offering combines school improvement services with exceptional central support functions including operations management (policies, compliance, health & safety via Smartlog), finance support, CPD/professional development, NPQ qualification delivery, Early Career Teacher networks, and Local Governing Body governance support. Schools are organized into five geographic hubs (Oxford, West Oxfordshire, Southern Arc, North Oxfordshire, Thames) enabling localized collaboration while benefiting from centralized expertise. The trust also provides admissions authority services, data protection/GDPR support, and premises/building support through the Oxford Diocesan Board of Education.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• School Improvement Services

Quantifiable outcome

• 43 schools served, with ODST being the largest MAT in Oxfordshire
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Good Vibes Music AcademyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 April 2026Partnership with Good Vibes Music Academy to create a state-of-the-art music space at St Francis CE Primary School in Oxford. The partnership created a vibrant music studio offering children unique opportunities for musical education and enrichment.
• Oxford Diocesan Bucks Schools Trust (ODBST)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative relationship with ODBST for joint conferences and shared best practices. ODST hosted a summer term leadership conference jointly with ODBST at Bicester Hotel & Golf Club, focusing on strong and effective leadership development.
• Oxford Diocesan Board of Education (ODBE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerODBE established ODST in 2012 to provide an academy sponsor vehicle for schools in the Diocese of Oxford. ODBE provides premises support, governance training, and works closely with ODST on school admissions and appeals. ODST central team includes support from ODBE's buildings surveying team.
• Oxford University (Somerville College)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSt Frideswide CE Primary School is twinned with Oxford University's Somerville College, which provides 1:1 maths tutoring and experiences such as creating a biodiversity garden. Faculty of Music students provide music expertise.
• Rutherford Appleton LaboratoriesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Moreton School partners with Rutherford Appleton Laboratories to recycle helium balloons, being the first school in the country to support the science at the laboratories through helium recovery.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Harris Federation: One of the largest Multi-Academy Trusts in England, operating primary and secondary academies primarily in London and southern England. Comparable central services and school improvement model to ODST, but at materially larger scale and without diocesan affiliation.
• Ark Schools: Large national Multi-Academy Trust running primary and secondary academies across multiple English regions with extensive central services. Comparable scale and school-improvement orientation to ODST but operates as a national, non-diocesan charity.
• Academies Enterprise Trust (AET): One of England's largest Multi-Academy Trusts operating primary and secondary academies nationwide. Comparable central-services platform and school-improvement model to ODST at substantially greater scale.

Regional players

• Severn Academies Trust: Multi-Academy Trust operating schools across the West of England. Comparable primary-focused MAT structure with regional concentration, though serving a different geographic area from ODST.

Direct peers

• Bonitas Multi-Academy Trust: Berkshire-based Multi-Academy Trust currently transferring schools (Ranelagh School, Jennett's Park CE Primary) into ODST. Direct structural peer operating primary schools in overlapping geography with comparable central-service scale.
• Reach Academy Trust: Smaller Multi-Academy Trust operating primary and secondary schools in the south of England with a similar focus on local hub models and school improvement. Closely comparable in operating philosophy and scale per region, though smaller overall than ODST.
• Oxford Diocesan Bucks Schools Trust (ODBST): Sibling diocesan Multi-Academy Trust serving Buckinghamshire schools under the same Diocese of Oxford. Operates an essentially identical model — diocesan MAT, faith-based school portfolio, joint conferences with ODST — and is ODST's closest structural peer.
• Embrace Multi-Academy Trust: Leicestershire-based Multi-Academy Trust previously led by ODST's incoming CEO Sharon Mullins. Comparable MAT structure (primary-focused, central services, sponsored schools) and provides continuity context for ODST's new leadership approach.
• Oasis Academies: Large UK Multi-Academy Trust operating a family of primary and secondary academies across multiple regions. Directly comparable to ODST in structure (charitable MAT, central services model, sponsored schools) and operates at similar regional scale with a faith-informed ethos.

Others

• Diocese of Oxford Education Team: The Oxford Diocesan Board of Education (ODBE) is ODST's parent/Trust Member and provides premises surveying, governance training, and admissions support. Enabling/ecosystem counterpart that ODST relies on for back-office infrastructure rather than a competing operator.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ODSTschools
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/oxford-diocesan-schools-trust

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust