Academies are governed through their articles of association. In a MAT a single trust is responsible for a number of academies. The MAT consists of the members and the trustees.
The members are like the shareholders of a company. They have ultimate control over the academy trust, with the ability to appoint some of the trustees and the right to amend the trust’s article of association.
The trustees are responsible for the core governance functions; setting the direction, holding the headteacher to account, ensuring financial probity and compliancy with charity law requirements.
There will also be a local governing body (LGB) where trustees can delegate governance functions to the local governors. Trustees have complete discretion over what is delegated to each LGB. Alternatively, where a MAT wishes to retain all governance functions centrally, it may establish an advisory body at the school level, which has no formal governance function but which advises the board of trustees on its decisions.