The Heath Family Trust

What The Heath Family Trust does

The Heath Family Trust is a charitable Multi Academy Trust formed in 2013 that operates a network of eight state-funded schools across the Merseyside region of North West England. The trust comprises three secondary schools (The Heath School, Litherland High School, The Prescot School) and five primary schools (Bridgewater Park Primary, Daresbury Primary, Halsnead Primary, Litherland Moss Primary, Palace Fields Primary), serving over 3,500 children across the local authority areas of Halton, Knowsley and Sefton. The trust employs over 450 staff across both school sites and a central team, with leadership provided by a CEO & Accounting Officer (David Donnelly), Directors of Education, Director of Infrastructure, CFO, and Director of HR, supported by a board of trustees and three members serving on a voluntary basis. Schools are non-selective, do not charge fees, participate in their local authority admissions arrangements, and are inspected by Ofsted on the same basis as all other state schools. The trust is accountable to the Department for Education through a Regional Director and has stated that failure to operate effectively can result in schools being moved to other trusts.

The trust's revenue model is structurally determined: it receives funding directly from the UK government via the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) under a Master Funding Agreement (MFA) and individual School Funding Agreements (SFA), with no commercial customer base and no fee income. Its go-to-market is community-led — pupils are enrolled through local authority admissions arrangements in the trust's three catchment areas, and demand is therefore driven by local demographics rather than commercial activity. The technology platform is conventional Microsoft enterprise infrastructure — Azure AD, Microsoft Intune for device management across Windows laptops, desktops and iPads, on-premises Windows servers (2016/2019/2022), 3CX VOIP systems, network firewalls and web filtering, plus CCTV and door access control — operated by an in-house ICT team under the Director of Infrastructure. The trust also uses The Supply Register for flexible staffing and partners with the Right to Succeed charity on the Cradle to Career Halton Lea Project. Marketing is limited to organic social channels (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn) and the trust website at thfnw.uk. The trust's stated mission is to improve the life chances of children in communities with high levels of deprivation, using education as a vehicle for social mobility.

Name

The Heath Family Trust

Legal name

The Heath Family Trust

Website

https://thfnw.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Heath Family Trust is a charitable Multi Academy Trust operating eight state-funded schools (three secondary, five primary) across Halton, Knowsley and Sefton, serving over 3,500 children with 450+ staff and funded directly by the UK government via the ESFA.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Runcorn

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices9 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: The trust receives direct funding from the Department for Education through the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA). Schools receive the same level of funding as other local schools and do not charge fees. The trust is accountable to the DfE through a Regional Director.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Heath Family Trust is a charitable Multi Academy Trust that operates a network of eight state-funded schools (three secondary and five primary) across the Halton, Knowsley and Sefton local authority areas in Merseyside, providing education to over 3,500 children via 450+ staff. The trust delivers central governance, HR, finance, education development, and infrastructure support to its academies, all of which follow the national curriculum, are non-selective, do not charge fees, and are inspected by Ofsted. Revenue comes directly from the Department for Education via the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA).

Product overview

The Heath Family Trust is a charitable Multi Academy Trust formed in 2013 that operates a network of 8 schools across the Merseyside region (Halton, Knowsley, and Sefton local authority areas). The Trust provides educational services through three secondary schools and five primary schools. The organization's central team supports these schools with governance, HR, finance, education development, and infrastructure management functions. The schools follow the national curriculum, are inspected by Ofsted, participate in standard public exams, and do not charge fees. The schools operate under local authority admissions arrangements and are non-selective. The Trust receives government funding directly and is accountable to the Department for Education through a Regional Director.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bridgewater Park Primary School Primary school in Castlefields, Runcorn, providing state-funded primary education for children aged 5–11 in the Halton local authority area; part of the trust's network of eight schools and non-selective, with no fees charged.
• Daresbury Primary School Primary school in Daresbury, Warrington, providing state-funded primary education for children aged 5–11 in the Halton local authority area; non-selective, with no fees charged.
• Palace Fields Primary School Primary school in Palace Fields, Runcorn, providing state-funded primary education for children aged 5–11 in the Halton local authority area; non-selective, with no fees charged; also serves as the trust's headquarters address.
• Halsnead Primary School Primary school in Whiston, Prescot, providing state-funded primary education for children aged 5–11 in the Knowsley local authority area; non-selective, with no fees charged.
• Litherland Moss Primary School Primary school on Litherland Campus, Sterrix Lane, providing state-funded primary education for children aged 5–11 in the Sefton local authority area; non-selective, with no fees charged.
• The Heath School Secondary school in Clifton Road, Runcorn, providing state-funded secondary education for students aged 11–16/18 in the Halton local authority area, including GCSEs and post-16 provision; non-selective, with no fees charged.
• Litherland High School Secondary school on Litherland Campus, Sterrix Lane, providing state-funded secondary education for students aged 11–16/18 in the Sefton local authority area; non-selective, with no fees charged.
• The Prescot School Secondary school on Knowsley Park Lane, Prescot, providing state-funded secondary education for students aged 11–16/18 in the Knowsley local authority area; non-selective, with no fees charged.

Quantifiable outcome

• Academic outcomes particularly at primary level are improving
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Department for Education (DfE)coreOthersThe trust operates under oversight from the Department for Education through a Regional Director. The trust meets regularly with the RD to discuss school progress, governance and finance to ensure effective operation. The DfE has authority to move schools to other trusts if performance concerns arise.
• Local Authorities (Halton, Knowsley, Sefton)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe trust works closely with three local authorities - Halton, Knowsley and Sefton. Schools participate in local authority admissions arrangements and the trust maintains excellent relationships with these bodies.
• OfstedcoreOthersAll trust schools are inspected by Ofsted in the same way as other state schools. Schools must follow same rules on admissions, special educational needs, and exclusions as other schools.
• The Supply RegisterminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe Heath Family (NW) works with The Supply Register for temporary staffing services. Schools can access day-to-day supply, short-term and fixed-term staff through this register.
• Right to Succeed (Charity)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe trust works with the charity 'Right to Succeed' on the 'Cradle to Career' Halton Lea Project, which aims to improve outcomes for disadvantaged students in the local area.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Weaver Trust: North-West multi-academy trust led by Annette Williams, who also sits on The Heath Family Trust board. Highly comparable as a small-to-mid-sized MAT operating in overlapping Cheshire/Merseyside geographies with the same charitable, government-funded model.
• Academy Transformation Trust: Mid-sized multi-academy trust operating primary and secondary schools across the Midlands and North of England. Closest direct comparable in size, multi-phase structure, and DfE-facing governance model.
• Northern Lights Academy Trust: North-West multi-academy trust serving primary and secondary schools in similar coastal and post-industrial communities. Comparable in mission, deprivation focus, and scale of operation.
• L.E.A.D. Academy Trust: Multi-academy trust running primary and secondary schools across the East Midlands and North of England. Comparable in multi-LA spread, charitable status, and leadership-development-led growth strategy.

Broad incumbents

• Oasis Community Learning: National multi-academy trust operating academies across England with a similar community-embedded mission to serve disadvantaged pupils. Comparable in charitable structure, state funding model, and education-led value proposition.
• Harris Federation: Large London- and South-East-focused multi-academy trust operating primary and secondary academies. Comparable as a MAT running both phases under shared central services and government funding.
• United Learning: One of the largest UK multi-academy trusts operating primary and secondary schools nationally. Comparable to The Heath Family Trust as a charity-run, government-funded MAT network, but with materially greater scale and geographic reach.
• Ark Schools: Multi-academy trust running primary and secondary schools across the UK, focused on improving outcomes for disadvantaged pupils. Directly comparable charitable, government-funded school network serving a similar mission.
• Outwood Grange Academies Trust: Multi-academy trust operating a network of secondary and primary academies across the North of England, including the Merseyside region. Closest regional comparable to The Heath Family Trust in scale and geography.

Others

• Reach Academy Trust:

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/THFTrust
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-heath-family-trust

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles29 records

Subsidiaries8 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 Heath Family Trust