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Internal Scrutiny

Our internal scrutiny programme provides more than assurance, bringing together expert insight and practical recommendations to streamline processes, strengthen governance and support your strategic priorities.
 
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Internal Scrutiny

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Our internal scrutiny service provides independent, risk-based assurance tailored to your trustees, helping you identify vulnerabilities, strengthen controls and maintain effective oversight across your organisation.

By sharing clear insights and recommendations, we help to ensure your time, attention and resources remain focused where they matter most, supporting schools to deliver the best possible outcomes for pupils.


What is Internal Scrutiny?

The Academy Trust Handbook requires all academy trusts to have a programme of internal scrutiny that provides independent assurance to the board that systems, controls, and risk management procedures are operating effectively.

Findings are reported to the board throughout the year, along with an annual summary where applicable, that supports governance, accountability, and oversight.

The true value of internal scrutiny is not in the findings alone, but in the quality of the recommendations provided, ensuring insights can be translated into meaningful, sustained improvements across the trust.

Our Approach

1. Set the scope

Each review is underpinned by the requirements of the Academy Trust Handbook, alongside statutory requirements and relevant guidance.

2. Review the evidence

We review key documentation such as policies and procedures, speak with relevant staff, and sample evidence to understand how controls and processes operate in practice.


3. Report our findings

We provide a clear, practical report highlighting findings, good practice, and tailored recommendations to support informed decision-making across the trust.

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Areas for review

Our service is delivered by education specialists with extensive experience in finance, governance, HR, safeguarding and school business management.

 

This ensures every review is carried out by subject matter experts, providing trusts with confidence that findings and recommendations are grounded in real-world experience of academy and school environments.

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Finance

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Finance

Our financial scrutineers benefit from extensive experience working in senior finance leadership roles in education, alongside specialist qualifications in Financial Reporting in Academies awarded by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA).

By combining sector expertise with independent scrutiny, we can identify opportunities to strengthen financial integrity, streamline processes, and enable your finance function to run more efficiently.

  • Strategic financial planning, funding and budgets
  • Cash and banking
  • Financial policies and procedures
  • Fraud and theft
  • Monthly financial closedown
  • Management accounts
  • Procurement
  • Related party transactions
  • Risk protection arrangement and insurance
Contact Us
OR CALL 0161 276 0160
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Governance

Our internal scrutiny service provides independent assurance that governance `   arrangements are sound, secure, and in line with statutory arrangements.

More than simply testing compliance, we provide practical, risk-based recommendations that support the long-term resilience of your trust.

  • Trust board governance effectiveness
  • Register of business interests and declarations
  • Academy Trust Handbook and policy compliance
Contact Us
OR CALL 0161 276 0160
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Human Resources

Our HR specialists bring extensive sector knowledge and a practical understanding of the challenges facing trust leaders. We tailor each review to the trust’s individual priorities, providing meaningful assurance in the areas that matter most.

Our risk-based approach identifies opportunities to strengthen compliance and organisational resilience, enhancing confidence in your people management arrangements.

  • HR policies and procedures
  • Staff induction and training
  • Whistleblowing
  • Health and safety
  • Single Central Record
  • Restructure and leadership
Contact Us
OR CALL 0161 276 0160
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Payroll

Payroll management is essential to the financial and operational efficiency of any multi-academy trust. Our internal scrutiny service will give your board the reassurance that payroll arrangements are robust, reliable, and fully compliant.

We will carry out a focused review of payroll controls and provide a clear report that strengthens processes and supports confident decision-making across the trust.

  • Payroll – People Manager
  • Pensions submissions
  • Contractual Service
  • BACS Bureau
  • HMRC – Real Time Information
Contact Us
OR CALL 0161 276 0160
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IT

Our internal scrutiny service provides independent assurance that IT systems and cybersecurity arrangements are operating effectively across the trust.

Drawing on over twenty years’ experience in education, our review extends beyond compliance, identifying vulnerabilities before they escalate and strengthening resilience across your digital environment.

  • IT & MIS systems
  • Cybersecurity
  • Data protection
  • Business continuity
Contact Us
OR CALL 0161 276 0160
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Marketing

We provide assurance that all school websites across the trust are fully compliant with statutory and Ofsted requirements.

Our expert-led review will identify compliance gaps and ensure information is easy to find, easy to follow, and fit for purpose. We will also consider how effectively your website communicates with its audience and captures your trust’s identity.

  • Health check including legibility and image quality
  • Ofsted requirements compliance check
  • Content clarity and accuracy
Contact Us
OR CALL 0161 276 0160
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Safeguarding

Our internal scrutiny review provides trustees and executive leaders with independent assurance that safeguarding arrangements are operating effectively and in line with statutory requirements.

Our review considers various elements of safeguarding practice, ensuring that all policies and procedures are embedded consistently across the trust. We will share practical recommendations that strengthen oversight, mitigate risk, and promote a consistent safeguarding culture across all schools.

  • Safeguarding arrangements
  • Staff training
  • Record keeping
  • Policies
  • Multi-agency working
  • Governance and accountability
  • Pupil welfare
  • Communication with parents/carers
Contact Us
OR CALL 0161 276 0160

FAQ's

Is Internal Scrutiny Mandatory for MATs?

Yes, the Academy Trust Handbook requires all MATs to have a programme of internal scrutiny to provide independent assurance to the board that its financial and non-financial controls and risk management procedures are operating effectively.

Yes, many trusts choose to outsource their internal scrutiny to an external provider. This approach provides independent assurance, whilst giving trusts access to sector-specific expertise and experience. It is also considered a cost-effective alternative to developing an in-house resource.

There is no fixed national requirement for how often internal scrutiny visits should take place. Instead, trusts should agree on a risk-led programme based on size, complexity, risk profile and previous findings, ensuring there is enough depth and coverage to provide effective assurance throughout the year. 

Internal scrutiny can be delivered through an in-house auditor, an external provider, a suitably qualified non-employee trustee, or an independent peer review by the CFO from another academy trust. Trusts can choose the approach that best fits their circumstances, but those undertaking the work must have the appropriate qualifications and experience.

Why choose us?

We understand that internal scrutiny should deliver added value for your trust as well as meeting statutory requirements. Our approach is designed to give trustees and senior leaders practical insight and clear direction for improvement.

Our service is delivered by specialists with many years’ experience working across academy trusts and school environments.

Our reviews extend beyond financial controls to include key areas such as GDPR and data protection, health and safety, safeguarding, and more.

We help trusts stay on top of evolving compliance requirements, ensuring that systems of governance remain effective across the trust.

We recognise that every trust is unique, which means we tailor our approach to the size, structure and priorities of your organisation.

Our reports provide clear, practical recommendations to strengthen processes and decision-making.

Contact us

Get in touch with our team to discuss your internal scrutiny requirements.

We will explain more about the areas we can review, how we structure our approach, and how we can align our service with your priorities.

 

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