Cathie Paine CBE

Chief Executive Officer, REAch2 Academy Trust

Appointed in 1998 to her first headship in a socially deprived school in special measures, Cathie was the youngest headteacher in England and led the school to become good in a year. Cathie was then executive headteacher of three schools, including Mount Street Academy, a double outstanding National Teaching School. Cathie joined REAch2, the country’s largest primary-only trust in 2012 as its first employee. She has overseen its growth to 65 schools, serving 23,000 children. In that time the number of schools judged as good or better (according to the previous framework) has risen from four schools in 2013 to 100% of REAch2 schools today. Appointed as REAch2’s CEO in 2021, Cathie retains her passion for transforming children’s lives in environments of exceptional practice. Cathie was awarded the honour of CBE in the King’s Birthday Honours list in June 2025 for services to education.

Hall 9

1 Series four

GAG pooling: Driving fairness, resilience, and strategic impact

With rising costs and tightening budgets, some trusts are exploring GAG pooling as a way to build financial resilience and ensure equity across their academies. In this session, trust leaders will share their respective approaches – from equalising pension rates and centralising services, to using pooled reserves to support vulnerable schools and invest in shared priorities. We’ll discuss practical insights into how it works for them, the benefits it has the potential to unlock, and how to manage the cultural and leadership challenges along the way. Whether you are considering GAG pooling or looking to refine your existing approach, this session will help you think strategically and act confidently.

15:35

1 15 October

Keynote: School improvement: Where we go next, together

When schools improve together what makes the difference - and how can more children benefit? In September, CST published major research tracking attainment across England’s state schools since 2007. It found that schools in trusts have, on average, improved more than other types of state-funded school, with particularly strong gains in disadvantaged communities. These findings pose a productive challenge: how do we move from evidence of improvement to a deeper understanding of what drives it? And how can we identify, codify and share the practices that make the greatest difference?