Edge Academy Milton Keynes

Milton Keynes Academy is an Edge-sponsored Academy for 1,500 11-18 year olds with an ‘enterprise’ specialism where students learn the skills for becoming entrepreneurs. Edge is an independent education foundation, which aims to raise the stature of practical and vocational education.

The Academy opened to staff on 1st September 2009 and ten days later to students – both on time and on budget.  It was the first Academy in the UK to open under the Partnerships for Schools (PfS) ‘Design and Build’ national framework and has been nominated in PfS awards for Best Design for a New School, Most Inspirational Use of Outdoor Space and Best Building Schools for the Future (BSF) Academy. 

Cambridge Education was commissioned during both the feasibility and the implementation phases of the project to provide:

• educational advice
• ICT consultancy
• overall project management
• facilities management
• HR /Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment (TUPE) Regulations advice.

Cambridge Education has provided these services to many other Academies and BSF schemes, thereby bringing extensive experience of the education sector, coupled with project management and ICT expertise from all education sectors.
Cambridge Education used workshops to capture the key aspirations for the Academy. The design of ICT and the building process itself enabled the Academy to provide a practical learning environment that delivered a curriculum focused on ‘learning by doing’.

The scheme was delivered on budget. Financial monitoring was carried out through weekly internal monitoring and bi-weekly external reporting of implementation claims to the DCSF's finance department. Cambridge Education developed a cost tracker which mapped projected spend against actual to provide a clear and accurate picture of the finances. Internal cost control techniques also allowed us to pre-empt resource requirements at key times of the project enabling the right people to be engaged on the project when they were required, all within budget. 

Our HR and TUPE advisors worked closely with several changes of local authority HR officers to deliver a smooth transition. Very good relationships were developed with the sponsors and the Academy principal.

Cambridge Education reviewed the Academy’s implementation budget management process.  We developed an in-house cost, budget and invoicing tracker to enable clearer and quicker cost reporting to the DCSF and pre-emptive cost management designed to monitor cash flow forecasts against expenditure.

Although not responsible for constructing the Academy, Cambridge Education were able to support the senior leadership team through the process from experience on other similar schemes.  Our ICT consultants were invaluable during this phase, working with the senior leadership team to ‘translate’ their educational vision into the building itself.
Since the Academy has opened, our HR team have been commissioned to provide ongoing advice to the Academy.

Cambridge Education added value:

• Academy delivered on budget and on time.
• In-house provision of all the services (except legal) required for delivery of the Academy
• Project management focused on education outcomes
• Clear understanding of ‘educational transformation’ – rethinking the way education and learning are delivered.