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Growing our people, growing our organisation, growing our sector.

Our mission is to challenge educational and social disadvantage in the North.

Watch a short film about what it means to attend, work for or learn with Dixons Academies Trust.

Our principals are empowered to lead their academies, and they do so to improve the life chances of their students.

​Dixons Academies Trust is a multi academy trust of schools across Bradford, Leeds, Liverpool and Greater Manchester.

Our 2-5 year masterplan and big moves.

An introduction to the academies that make up our trust.

Dixons Academies Trust has three levels of governance to hold the chief executive, and principals to account.

An introduction to our trustees and members.

Read our trust policies which govern specific aspects of our work.

Key documentation about our constitution and funding.

Lord Kalms of Edgware has kindly granted our trust a bursary.

Train in aspirational and successful schools which are innovating to improve the life chances of local children.

Read the news and the full report.

A summary of our A Level and GCSE results in 2021.

Our next step into the North West.

Following the research, not the headlines.

240 fully funded places on pioneering exemplary leadership programme from UK/US partnership

Read the letter here.

Dixons celebrates three years in the national top three.

Another great honour for our CEO.

The wait is over as the class of 2021 collect their GCSE results.

A brief roundup of A Level Results from across the Trust.

Another landmark for a school with a growing reputation for excellence.

We are delighted to announce further improvement in the national league tables.

Congratulations to Ruby Bhatti OBE!

Outstanding news to cap an exciting year for the Trust

Dixons Academies excel in 2018 league tables

Start your teaching career at Dixons with evidence-informed training, outstanding personal mentoring and strong peer networks.

We believe that everyone can continue to grow throughout their career and we invest in talent as our greatest resource. Find a course to support your professional growth.

Dixons Academies is home of Bradford Research School, part of the EEF network striving to support the use of evidence to improve teaching practice.

Train in our successful, aspirational and dynamic academies across Bradford, Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester.

Find out what subjects are available.

Get in touch to talk to us about training to teach at Dixons.

Discover Dixons by completing school experience with us.

Details about the application process.

Options for teacher training funding.

Find out why our trainees would recommend training to teach with Dixons.

Find out how to contact us.

Find out more about life as a teacher during your training year and read some advice from our trainees.

Find out more about who you will work closely with from our Centre for Growth team if you train to teach with Dixons.

Find out more about the ITT curriculum and the training year.

At Dixons, we ask ourselves four critical questions to achieve clarity for everyone in our trust.

At Dixons, our commitment to organisational health has been longstanding.

Those who have visited our schools have recognised that our strong cultures liberate teachers to teach and students to learn – and, because students know why we do things, they buy into them.

​Self-determination theory posits that humans have natural growth tendencies and want to learn and develop.

The optimal balance between consistency and self-determination that can empower agility.

All Dixons academies apply these common principles to curriculum creation and development.

Our staff practice like champions.

Codifying our culture in bitesized videos, all hosted on our platform: dixonsos.com.

Some resources for students, families and staff to access advice and support for a range of issues.

We are passionate about using music and performing arts to support our students’ learning and development.

We have a firm belief in educating the whole child, and we know that this can only be done by providing a well-balanced education that encompasses both classroom learning and outdoor experiences.

Dixons students know that there are no shortcuts when it comes to success in academics and life.

Students leading the voice of their generation.

All Dixons academies apply these common principles to the curriculum creation and development.

Building on the work of Dixons OpenSource, we are excited to launch our revolutionary digital platform for school improvement which places organisational culture at the heart

Sir Nick Weller will be moving on from Dixons after 16 years leading the trust.

Staff at Dixons Music Primary were delighted to learn last week that the school continues to be Outstanding in all areas after a recent inspection by Ofsted.

A message for our families on the death of Her Majesty the Queen.

Two live events usually only available for those with exclusive Dixons Onsite and Dixons Insight access will be made available for all OpenSource users completely free. Sign up today for access.

Join us for a free live virtual Q&A session with Luke Sparkes, Chief Executive at Dixons

Luke Sparkes has taken on the role of Chief Executive from the start of this academic year.

Our work with Citizens UK has supported students to have a voice and make real change in their communities.

Sir Nick Weller is chairing a new advisory group to support the Department for Education on a new framework for multi-academy trust leadership.

Opening to boys and girls from September 2023.

Join us online for a virtual open event to discuss admissions for Dixons Newall Green, which will open next year.

Consultation on the admissions arrangements for Dixons Trinity Academy and Dixons Sixth Form Academy.

Dixons Academies Trust is delighted to announce the new name and reach of its professional development commitment: Dixons Centre for Growth.

Hundreds of students shared their thoughts about what needs to change for young people in Bradford, culminating in a listening summit.

Congratulations to Dixons Cottingley on its recent Ofsted inspection.

Sixth form students have their say on Bradford Community radio station.

The new website: www.joindixonsat.com is dedicated to supporting our talent strategy by focusing on why and how we put talent first at Dixons.

Find our FAQs here.

Our students meet with Bradford council’s wellbeing board.

Dixons Trinity, Dixons City and Dixons Kings make the list.

Focus on the Dixons Women in Education programme.

Nicole Dempsey, Director of SEND and Inclusion, shared how and why she evolved an alternative approach to SEND inclusion, first at one of the academies and now, increasingly, throughout the trust.

Meet our shadow board.

We have an ambitious ED&I strategy which is detailed here.

Dixons schools receive school uniform through donation scheme.

Dixons contributes to latest research on modelling in teacher professional development.

Dixons Music Primary works hard make it to the air pollution finals.

Dixons contributes to the Academies Regulatory and Commissioning Review.

Since 2018, we have been proud to be the home of Bradford Research School, one of 38 across the country supporting schools in the use of evidence to improve teaching practice.

The role of action planning in closing the knowing-doing gap.

A new community hub to serve the families of the school,“Unity Community” is now open every Friday morning.

For most areas in education, we can make tentative statements based on the available evidence. We can weigh up evidence, and use that to help us decide what would be the most fruitful thing to focus on. We place our ​‘best bets’. It’s important that when we communicate these ​‘best bets’, we acknowledge that tentative nature of our claims.

Revisiting previously learnt content is an important part of curriculum design. Pupils forget, so it is necessary to revisit, often through retrieval.

We have recently launched an approach to professional growth which aims to fuel future performance and strengthen our relationships by introducing coaching check-ins for all members of Team Dixons.

Professional Development may be more effective if it establishes a method whereby teachers can monitor and record their own performance. That’s the key message from Mechanism 13 of the EEF’s Effective Professional Development guidance report.

Dixons Academies Trust contributed to an evidence session with the Child of the North All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG).

According to ELIS (2013): ​“The suggestion is that different disciplines (or subject areas) have thinking and language practices that are specific to them and that students are likely to be held back from a full understanding of the content of such disciplines to the extent that they do not master the related language and thinking practices.”

In May, Dixons Sixth Form student Uzayr Khan visited Buckingham Palace for the Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) gold award celebration event.

View the performance tables for our academies.

What do we need to read successfully in subject disciplines? We need subject knowledge. We also need to be proficient in reading, and have a number of generic strategies that help with reading comprehension such as prediction and clarifying.

There are some things we can do in our classrooms where once is enough, but there are so many aspects of day to day teaching that can happen multiple times or – if not embedded – happen zero times. How can we go from zero to embedded?

In this blog, we have emphasised the fact that generic strategies, although useful, are not always sufficient to fully make sense of subject disciplines.

The following is an imagined case study of a school leader using evidence to inform their decisions.

An interview with Principal Stephen Garvey, and Vice Principals Kate Henney and Sophie Galloway.

How the mechanisms from the EEF’s Effective Professional Development guidance report work together.

Mark Miller, Director of Bradford Research school looks at some of the nuance of retrieval practice.

The Accelerate programme is one of the many strands of our ED&I Strategy to help everyone, no matter what their visible and invisible characteristics, to feel like they belong.

Our new free school in Manchester opens its doors to Year 7 students this week.

Dixons Academies Trust will open two new free schools in Manchester as part of the Department for Education’s new wave of 15 free schools in areas across the UK with the lowest educational outcomes.

What does disadvantage mean? This blog explores the different answers and interpretations to this question.

Read more about how Dixons has been involved in a new report from the Child of the North APPG.

How the EEF’s RADAAR approach can help science teachers deal with preconceptions and misconceptions.

Pump up the volume or press the mute button?

Diagnosing the issues behind the headline figures.

As we approach Disability History Month, Kathryn Downs reflects on her personal experiences and highlights the importance of this month and what we can learn.

On Wednesday 22 November, students from our Bradford academies participated in the Bradford Citizens delegates' assembly at Bradford Girls' Grammar School.

The N in SEND stands for needs. Recommendation 2 from the EEF’s Special Educational Needs in Mainstream Schools guidance report tells us to: Build an ongoing, holistic understanding of your pupils and their needs.

As a trust, we are offering a nine-day fortnight for our teachers.

Dixons Academies’ CEO Luke Sparkes explains why the trust is introducing a radical flexible working policy to help tackle teacher workload and boost recruitment and retention.

Restoring relationships with self, others and curriculum

Data shows limited input from racialised minority groups in leadership decisions and curriculum delivery, meaning students from ethnic minority backgrounds are unable to see themselves represented in the education system.

At Dixons, we are working through the plans for making flexible working a reality. Flexibility in our workforce is vital to recruiting more teachers.

Blog by Rose Hastings and testimonials / reflections from some of the participants in our Women in Ed network.

Students from across Dixons schools represented at the Convention of the North this month, speaking on issues which affect young people currently.

Here at Dixons, we have been working hard on developing and rolling out our trust equality, diversity and inclusion (ED&I) agenda, as this is a strategic priority for us.

Our Director of SEND and Safeguarding, Nicole Dempsey recently attended UNESCO’s Global Inclusive Schools’ Forum, at its headquarters in Paris.

Dixons Academies Trust was featured on ITV Calendar news last week, discussing our flexible working plans.

At Dixons, we are doing lots of work around the civic responsibility space, focusing on giving our students a voice and supporting them to challenge educational and social disadvantage in our communities.

We are absolutely thrilled to share the fantastic news that Bradford Citizens has been shortlisted for the prestigious Tes Schools Awards 2024!

Our academies across the trust acknowledge mental health awareness week by taking part in mindful activities.

Dixons Unity Academy held a prom wear hire event to provide all of their students with an outfit for their end of year ceremony.

Funmi Stewart, Trust Assistant Principal for Research and Development for Anti-Racism and ED&I, and Maryam Kapree, Dixons Trinity alumnus were recently invited to represent Dixons Academies Trust at Leeds Trinity University’s Race, Equity and Social Justice conference.

Bradford Citizens UK have been awarded The Tim Brighouse Community Engagement Initiative of the Year award as part of the recent Tes Schools awards 2024.

Student representatives from eight of our academies across Bradford, Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester attended the national Citizens UK general election assembly in London this week.

We celebrated our first-ever cross-regional collaboration concert, held at the historic St George’s Hall in Bradford on 10 July.

We are working hard behind the scenes on the timetabling process, to make our flexible working plans a working reality in our academies.

We are a talent first organisation, and we believe that our talent is our most valuable resource.

In our trust, we think deeply about how pupils acquire and consolidate knowledge. In this blog from our research school, we discuss the importance of revisiting knowledge.

Why do we value classroom routines in our trust? In this blog from our research school, James Dyke explains the what and the why.

Generic vocabulary approaches are not always enough to make sense of subject disciplines. In this blog, Mark Miller, Director of Bradford Research School, looks at disciplinary literacy approaches for vocabulary.

Dixons Sixth Form Academy was featured on ITV Calendar news last week as part of a results day segment.

In our trust, we place high value in the teaching of reading, but we know that generic approaches are not enough – we need to consider what effective reading looks like in each subject. What should we consider? Read this blog from our research school.

Our mission is to challenge educational and social disadvantage in the North. This mission is aligned with the Education Endowment Foundation, founders of the Research Schools Network. In this blog we consider what we mean when we use the term ‘disadvantage’.

Students across our trust recently received their A Level and GCSE results.

We took part in a live broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live at Dixons Broadgreen Academy in Liverpool.

We are partering with Ambition Institute to analyse the impact of our nine-day fortnight.

One of our outstanding School and College Trust Leaders, Jenny Thompson, has contributed to a newly published book.

In a recent interview, Joel Kenyon, Head of Science at Dixons Croxteth Academy, shared his extremely positive experience of being part of Team Dixons.

As a trust, we have a strong focus on ensuring that EDI is at the forefront of everything we do, and ensure we are seen as role models not only in our sector, but also for our students, demonstrating how we create an inclusive environment where everyone feels safe.

One of our big moves as a trust is a focus on community, and developing and maintaining stronger relationships with the communities we serve.

In a recent interview,Aroosa Mustafa, Head of Computing and IT at Dixons Trinity Academy, shared her experience of being an Asian woman exploring a career in IT.

We are excited by artificial intelligence's to improve educational outcomes, and transform our sector.

In a recent interview Simon Gayle, Vice Principal at Dixons Kings Academy shared how our mission impacts him.

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At Dixons, we have jettisoned appraisal and instead provide personalised coaching for all members of team Dixons.

Dixons has been selected as one of the top 10 performing trusts in the country.

The Bradford City Football Club community foundation ran a warm-up shirt design competition in schools across Bradford and received over 1,000 entries. The winning design is by Waleed, one of our Year 4 students.

Why lunch time at our academies isn't just about eating.

One of our outstanding colleagues, Tamsin Rafnsson, Director of Music has contributed to a published article.

Students at Dixons Music Primary academy won a Bradford council competition to name a gritting machine.

Students from Dixons Trinity Academy featured on a BBC radio Leeds segment earlier this week to talk about their participation in Born in Bradford's Age of Wonder study.

As we approach the end of Disability History Month, Kathryn Downs, Teacher of Maths, Dixons Unity Academy, reflects on her personal experiences and highlights the importance of this month and what we can learn.

How do thoughtful teaching strategies help students achieve meaningful success?

Students from our Liverpool based academies came together last week in a collaborative Christmas concert.

Our mission is to challenge educational and social disadvantage in the North. In the communities we support, we understand that poverty is rife, and it’s the most powerful lever to pull in tackling inequality.

Our stand-alone sixth form academy is ranked highest in the Bradford region for attainment out of all 16-19 academies, free schools and Sixth Form Colleges.

Our college, Dixons Sixth Form in Bradford has ranked among the highest in the country for pupil choice.

Through our civic responsibility work, we're working hard to establish community hubs in all of our academies.

Dixons Croxteth Academy, is celebrating a big milestone in its journey.

We are proud to have been featured on BBC Breakfast last week in a segment exploring the proposed pay increase for teachers.

One of our teachers, Kat Downs, recently won a NASUWT Union award for 'Best Engagement with Under-represented groups'.

Students from Dixons Music Primary were invited to attend the official opening of Bradford Live!

The Government has announced an expansion of mental health support teams to reach more schools, a key policy ask that our students have consistently advocated for through their campaign work in partnership with Citizens UK.

Dixons City Academy has been selected as a lead school for music by the West Yorkshire Music Hub.

Last week, Louisa Sharp, Head of Service Relationships, represented our trust at the Schools and Academies Show 2025 at ExCeL London.

School and College Trust Leader, Robyn Ellis, recently featured on an episode of the 'Inside Your Ed' podcast.

At Dixons, we believe in aligned autonomy: clear structures where needed, freedom where it counts. Teachers shape the work, supported by trust, collaboration, and a shared mission. Trusts done right don’t limit autonomy - they unlock it. Read more!

A Year 8 student from Dixons Broadgreen Academy finishes third in the National Boxing Championships.

A Year 11 student from Dixons Trinity Academy has been selected to represent England U16s Community Lions Rugby League Team.

A new NFER report reveals urgent ethnic disparities in teacher training and career progression, with vital contributions from our school and college trust leader, Faizal Musa.

We were proud to attend the P2P Transformation Summit and thrilled to be named runner-up for Public Sector Team of the Year!

Our Director of SEND and Safeguarding, Nicole Dempsey, recently contributed to a Tes article about the proposed cuts to EHCPs.

A talented group of Year 9 students from Dixons Unity Academy have created artwork for a photography exhibition at Armley library.

We're delighted to announce our partnership with British Rowing to provide rowing opportunities for young people across Liverpool and Manchester

Through initiatives such as OpenSource, we're helping to drive advancement in our sector and support leaders across the country.

Community is at the heart of everything we do.

Our 2-5 year strategy has been significantly shaped by our EDI work and the significant strides we have made.

We're proud to have achieved some incredible results through our work.

Dixons Unity Academy students Nathan Campbell and Ronnie Walters have won a prestigious King’s Trust Award for their inspirational community project, our Unity Community.

Earlier this week, students across our trust took part in our first ever whole trust athletics championships.

Joy is an integral part of our life at Dixons.

Students across our trust recently met with Baroness Anne Longfield as part of a Citizens UK event.

Students from two of our Manchester based academies attended the Greater Manchester Citizens Regional Youth Assembly.

Dixons Cottingley Academy have secured IQM flagship school status.

Our first-ever whole-trust virtual art exhibition is now live!

We celebrated our second inter-city collaboration concert, held at the historic St George’s Hall in Bradford on 14 July.

Students from all of our primary academies recently took part in a poetry recital competition.

New Year 7 students at Dixons Brooklands Academy and Dixons Newall Green Academy kicked off their secondary school journey with a dynamic three-day media workshop led by Media Cubs.

A year ago, our trust introduced the nine-day fortnight: read more about the impact so far.

Teachers involved in the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) evaluation reported that the nine-day fortnight is supporting their well-being, job satisfaction, and work–life balance.

Proposed closure of Post-16 provision at Dixons Allerton Academy.

Details of proposed changes to admission arrangements at Dixons McMillan Academy, Dixons Trinity Academy and Dixons Trinity Chapeltown Academy.

At the CST People and Culture Conference 2025, Faizal Musa, one of our trust leaders, shared how Dixons’ people-first approach is transforming the working lives of staff.

Dixons City Academy has been awarded the prestigious Music Mark of Recognition by the Bradford Music and Arts Service, celebrating the academy’s ambition and quality in music education.

We’re proud to be featured in the Inclusion in Practice case study series, which showcases innovative approaches to SEND inclusion across the country.

This week, academies across our trust came together to mark Remembrance Day, honouring those who gave the ultimate sacrifice and reflecting on the values of service, courage, and hope.

Proposed closure of Post-16 provision at Dixons Broadgreen Academy.

Students at Dixons Brooklands Academy and Dixons Newall Green Academy are shaping local change through their work with Greater Manchester Citizens.

Flexible working at Dixons helps teachers recharge, plan, and focus, so they can be fully present for students. Hear more from Jennifer Devine, one of our teachers, on how it’s transformed her working life.

Information on the consultation on admissions arrangements at Dixons Unity Academy.

At Dixons, our flexible working policy is part of a wider commitment to making teaching a sustainable and fulfilling career. It’s about valuing people, building balance, and reimagining what’s possible in education.

At Dixons, we believe great teaching starts with supporting the people who make it possible. Our flexible working approach reflects our dedication to balance, wellbeing, and a refreshed vision of what a career in education can be.

As we approach the end of Disability History Month, we’re reflecting on this year’s theme, Disability: Life and Death, through the voices of our colleagues. 

Join us for a free virtual seminar discussing the vision, plan and implementation process behind our 9 day fortnight - an initiative we have rolled out to teachers across our trust.

A reflective series exploring the complex, human reality of transforming a struggling school, and why true improvement goes far beyond headline judgments and inspection snapshots.

Saying ‘yes’ to Dixons Croxteth Academy meant embracing immense operational, financial, and moral challenges to support a community and children who needed it most.

We are starting a series of blogs from staff, students and families. Read our first one here.

This blog explores the “messy middle” of school transformation, highlighting that improvement is a complex, non-linear and deeply human process requiring tailored execution, resilience and sustained belief, often misunderstood by simplified data, public perception and external scrutiny.

As we approach the end of LGBTQ+ History Month, we’re reflecting on this year’s theme, Science and Innovation, through the voices of our colleagues.

Pioneers Partnership SCITT is committed to providing the highest quality of teacher training and development.

With the launch of our cricket academy, we are excited to widen participation for this incredible sport.

A mission-driven vision for improving the toughest schools, calling for stronger teaching, deeper community partnerships, and smarter accountability that recognises real progress in the most challenging contexts.

The catering team at Dixons Brooklands has won the Contract Catering Education Award!

Our Cricket Academy, led by former professional cricketer and ECB Level 3 coach Maroof Khan, will expand access to elite cricket opportunities for talented students across the North, particularly those from low-income backgrounds.

As we approach the end of Neurodiversity Celebration Week, we’re reflecting on this year’s theme, from awareness to action: making organisational change happen, through the voices of our colleagues.

Circles are a simple, open approach to organising work so the right people can make the right decisions at the right time, together.

Mission Mapping turns culture into a clear, taught and repeatable system so values become visible impact every day.

Strategic planning makes strategy a live, adaptive system that connects long-term vision to weekly action and real-world impact.

A redesign of how we structure work in education, exploring a nine-day fortnight built on trust, flexibility, and system-level change to improve sustainability, retention, and impact.

At Dixons, teaching is built on 12 evidence-informed principles that ensure every lesson is deliberately designed for lasting learning, not left to chance.

One of our trustees, Dr Ruby Bhatti, has been appointed High Sheriff of West Yorkshire, marking a historic milestone for representation in the county.