The private network for MAT finance & operations leaders
Find out what a supplier is really like before you sign, from trusts who have already used them. Ask the awkward question somewhere nobody outside the network can see it. Borrow the templates. Get to know people who do your job.
Free for MAT finance and operations professionals. No card, and no paid tier sitting behind the free one. Suppliers pay to be listed. Members never have.
Being a finance leader in a MAT can be isolating
You make big decisions all year, usually with nobody to sense-check them against.
There is no shortage of guidance, frameworks or training. Very little of it reflects what running finance inside a trust is actually like. And none of it tells you whether the supplier quoting you £40k is any good, or what the trust down the road paid for the same thing.
What's actually behind the login
This is a working platform, not a newsletter or a LinkedIn group. Everything below is open to you from the day your application is approved.
Peer reviews of the suppliers you're about to sign
Members who have worked with a supplier score them across six criteria and write up how it went. You get to read all of it.
- An overall score, plus separate marks for quality, delivery, responsiveness, value, professionalism and ongoing support
- Full written reviews, including the ones suppliers would rather you didn't read
- Suppliers see their own scores and never the words
- Post named, by role only, or anonymously
A confidential forum of people who do your job
Ask the thing you can't put to your CEO, your board or your auditor. Members post under a job title and a region instead of a name, so you can be completely specific about a problem without anyone working out who you are.
- Members only, pre-moderated, and closed to suppliers
- Benchmarking questions answered with real figures from real trusts
- Mentions, reactions and a weekly digest, so you don't have to live in it
A directory of finance leaders you can actually reach
Search by topic, trust size and region, then ask for an introduction. Nothing happens until both people say yes, so nobody gets cold-pitched.
- Everyone is listed by role and region. Sharing your name is your choice.
- Filter by the topics people have said they're happy to talk about
- Introductions only, with no direct messaging and no inbox to keep on top of
Templates and models you don't have to build twice
Working documents from members and from the MATFMA team. The things you would otherwise rebuild from scratch at 9pm, or pay a consultant to produce.
- ICFP models, risk registers, policy templates and scenario planners
- Free to download, with no per-item charge
- Plus articles written by members, most of which never leave the network
Executive Strategy Rooms
Closed-door sessions on the decisions that keep you up at night.
Career pathwaysEmerging Leaders Network
Small peer cohorts for finance professionals stepping into strategic roles.
EventsRoundtables & Trust Talk
Free to book once you're a member, including the monthly catch-up with no agenda.
Interim registerInterim CFO Register
Find interim finance leadership from inside the network, or list your own availability.
Built on three principles
Safe professional space
Confidential, non-commercial and independently facilitated. A place where you can speak freely.
Peer connection
Finance leaders who understand the pressure because they're navigating exactly the same challenges.
Shared experience
Real insight from professionals who have been there. No theory, no consultants, just proven knowledge.
The room is closed, and it stays closed
A peer network is only as useful as it is private. Three things keep this one that way, and the platform enforces all three. None of it rests on good intentions.
Suppliers can never see it
No supplier can reach the forum, the member directory, the tools library or a single word of review text. That holds on every tier, including the paid one. They see their own scores and nothing else.
Every member is checked
A person reads each application and verifies it against a real trust. Consultants and salespeople hoping for a route to members are turned down.
You choose how you appear
Post and appear under a job title and region instead of your name. Reviews can be named, role only, or anonymous. Change your mind whenever you like.
Three steps, and no cost at any of them
You apply
About two minutes. Your role, your trust, and a sentence on why you'd like to join.
We review
A person reads every application and checks you work in a UK multi-academy trust. Usually within three working days.
You're in
You set a password and get the lot straight away: reviews, forum, directory, templates and event booking.
The questions people ask us
Is it really free?
Yes. It is free for finance and operations professionals working in UK multi-academy trusts, and it always has been. There is no trial, no upgrade tier, and nothing to pay. Suppliers fund the network by paying to be listed in the directory. Members don't.
Can suppliers see what I post?
No. Suppliers cannot reach the forum, the member directory, the tools library, the insights library, or any review text, on any tier including the paid one. Three separate layers of the platform enforce that, so it isn't simply hidden in the interface. A supplier sees how many reviews they have and what those reviews average. They never see what you wrote.
Will my name and trust be visible to other members?
That is up to you. By default you appear as a job title, a trust size and a region, with no name attached. Reviews can be posted named, by role only, or anonymously. It all sits in your profile, and you can change it whenever you want.
Who gets accepted?
Finance and operations professionals working inside a UK multi-academy trust. CFOs, finance directors, business managers, heads of operations, and the people coming up behind them. A person reads every application. Consultants and suppliers hoping for a route to members get turned down, which is what keeps the room worth being in.
How long does approval take?
We aim to come back to you within three working days. The form itself takes about two minutes.
What if I just want to read, not post?
That is fine, and it is how most people start. Nobody has to post. Plenty of members join for the supplier reviews and the templates, then chip in months later when a question comes up they can answer.
Stop navigating it alone
Join finance and operations leaders from trusts across the country. It costs nothing, a person reads every application, and most are approved within three working days.
Apply free, takes 2 minutesNo card required. Members never pay.