Clear, up-to-date school policies help schools and academy trusts meet their responsibilities, guide staff and manage day-to-day decisions consistently. CEFM provides practical guidance across key policy areas, alongside access to more than 170 model policies, templates and supporting resources through CEFMi.
Schools and academy trusts that are not currently members can request a one-month trial of CEFMi, together with the next three editions of CEFMinform, free of charge.
Schools use policies to set clear expectations, explain responsibilities and ensure that decisions are made consistently. Some policies are required by law or Department for Education guidance, while others are adopted to support good governance, safeguarding, employment practice and the everyday management of the school.
Policy requirements vary according to the type of establishment. A maintained school, academy trust, free school, special school, maintained nursery school or pupil referral unit may not need exactly the same documents or approval arrangements. Policies should therefore be selected for the setting, assigned to an appropriate owner and reviewed whenever legislation or guidance changes.
CEFM supports schools and academy trusts with model policies covering areas such as safeguarding, behaviour, equality, data protection, health and safety, staff management, governance and teaching and learning.
Statutory policies for schools are policies that a school or academy trust is required to hold under legislation or statutory guidance. The precise list depends on the type of school, its governance arrangements and whether responsibility sits with an individual school or a trust.
Examples can include policies and procedures covering safeguarding, admissions, behaviour, complaints, equality, health and safety, data protection and staff matters. Some policies must be published on the school website, while others must be available on request or approved and reviewed by the governing body or trust board.
Schools should check the latest Department for Education guidance and the requirements that apply to their particular establishment. CEFMi policy documents include review information and are updated as relevant guidance changes.
Schools need policies and procedures to turn legal duties, statutory guidance and agreed standards into clear actions for staff, governors and trustees. A well-written policy explains what the school expects, who is responsible and what should happen when an issue arises.
Effective school policies and procedures help to:
A policy is only effective when it reflects current requirements, is understood by the people who use it and is reviewed at appropriate intervals.
Members of CEFM’s core education consultancy service receive access to CEFMi, our online policy, guidance and advice service for schools and academy trusts. It brings together more than 7,000 pages of model policies, templates, forms, guidance and updates, including over 170 policies written specifically for education settings.
Documents are created in-house, reviewed regularly and supported by revision information, helping school leaders find reliable material in one place. Where a required document is not already available, CEFMi users can ask the team whether it can be drafted for their setting.
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Services are delivered by experienced legal, finance, occupational health and education professionals.
Current information and policy updates
CEFM helps members keep up with relevant guidance, policy changes and education updates.
Giving schools confidence to act
Content is produced in-house with reference to relevant DfE, Ofsted, ESFA, ICAEW and ACAS guidance.
Clear membership arrangements
Speak to the CEFM team about the services included and the membership options available to your school.
A quotation based on your school’s needs
Request a no-obligation quotation and discuss the HR, finance and policy support your school requires.
“The CEFMi portal is an excellent source of exemplar documentation such as policies and job descriptions, and the combined package has helped us with the varied, expected and unexpected challenges of supporting our staff” – Harlington School
CEFM produces its policy content in-house for schools and academy trusts. Documents are reviewed on a regular cycle and supported by revision information, helping members identify updates and work from the latest available version.
Our members also receive a single monthly CEFMinform newsletter, and regular education updates, helping you to respond to national changes quickly and confidently, whether you are a school, academy, maintained nursery school, maintained special school or other type of establishment.
We deliver high-impact events and seminars nationally to ensure that governing bodies, school leaders, managers and school staff have the skills and knowledge to respond to the issues that matter most.
Each week we add new insights to our website on the issues and challenges impacting schools.
For a no obligation quotation please click the more info button or to request a visit from one of our team to discuss CEFM membership for your school, call 01494 459183 or email sales@cefm.co.uk.
The guidance pages below introduce common school policy areas, explain their purpose and outline the responsibilities or procedures they may cover. Use these pages as an introduction, then access the related model policies and documents through CEFMi.
Schools need policies and procedures to explain responsibilities, support consistent decisions and turn legal or regulatory requirements into practical steps for staff and governors. They also help schools communicate expectations clearly to pupils, parents and the wider school community.
CEFM members can access more than 170 model school policies through CEFMi, together with templates, forms, guidance and revision information. Non-members can request a one-month trial of the service.
One of the most comprehensive online resources available for school managers. Over 7,000 pages of downloadable model policies, templates, forms and guidance.
Get access to our documents and the next three editions of CEFMinform.