Oasis Community Learning was established as a multi-academy trust in 2004 with the vision to create “Exceptional Education at the Heart of the Community.” Today, it comprises 54 academies – 32 primaries, 19 secondaries, and three all-through schools – serving over 32,000 students across England.
The Challenge: A complex, manual budgeting process in need of modernisation
Managing finances across such a large trust presented significant operational challenges. Budgeting, forecasting, and reporting were previously handled through manually-intensive Excel models, which made consistency and oversight difficult.
Chief Financial Officer Sarah Howells, who has progressed through various finance roles within Oasis since joining the Trust 2013, described the previous system as “labour-intensive and difficult to maintain”. Routine updates – such as adjusting teacher pay assumptions – required either issuing new models to all academies or manually editing each one individually. This process introduced risks of version control issues and inconsistent data.
“Our previous approach was very manual,” Sarah explained. “If I needed to change something like the teacher pay award percentage, I had to either issue a new budget model or manually update 54 separate files. That’s not sustainable.”
Additionally, the system only supported single-year budget uploads, requiring manual extraction and consolidation of data for multi-year analysis. Visibility across the Trust was limited, making it difficult to respond quickly to queries or assess the overall financial position without extensive manual checks.
These operational challenges coincided with wider financial pressures, including:
- A funding gap driven by modest increases in GAG funding versus rising staff costs.
- Real Living Wage increases affecting both internal staff and external contracts.
- An £800,000 shortfall in the National Insurance grant for 2025-26
To support strategic decision-making and ensure financial resilience, Oasis recognised the need for a unified, trust-wide budgeting and reporting platform.
The Solution: Trust-wide visibility and strategic control with IMP Planner
In December 2024, Oasis adopted IMP Planner to modernise its budgeting and forecasting systems. The goal was to centralise assumptions, improve data accuracy, and enable real-time reporting.
For Sarah, the transition to IMP Planner marked a significant shift. “The ability to access real-time reports and make trust-wide changes from a single platform has transformed how we manage budgets,” she said. “Instead of updating 54 separate models, I can now adjust assumptions centrally and ensure consistency across all academies.”
The new system also provides a multi-year view, enabling proactive planning and better alignment with strategic goals. “Previously, I had to rely on manual submissions to understand the budget position,” Sarah continued. “Now, I can see everything at a glance. It’s not just about saving time – it’s about having confidence in the numbers. I can focus on strategic decisions rather than chasing spreadsheets. That shift has been huge for us.”
Positive feedback from other trusts and finance leaders also influenced the decision. “A colleague attended an FD Forum event and came back saying, ‘Everyone’s talking about IMP.’ That kind of endorsement really matters.”
Together with the introduction of IMP, Sarah outlined what Oasis Community Learning has done to minimise the impact of the challenging financial environment on its academies:
- Early budget planning: Starting in October for the next academic year.
- Three-year budget setting: All academies must submit break-even budgets by June.
- ICFP integration: Aligning recruitment with financial assumptions to avoid reactive restructures.
- Prudent forecasting: Using conservative assumptions and comprehensive data to estimate GAG income.
- Targeted investment: Reducing high-cost areas like supply and alternative provision.
The Impact: Enhanced insight and informed decision-making
GAG pooling – introduced as part of a wider approach to regional and national centralisation – has enabled Oasis to manage resources more flexibly. “We can now create national contingencies to support academies facing unexpected challenges,” Sarah commented. “It’s also helped us offset the National Insurance shortfall and direct funding where it’s needed most.”
On the wider impact of IMP Planner, Sarah reflected that the ability to analyse KPIs across academies has been a major advantage: “Having all the data in one place means I can identify trends, spot anomalies, and challenge assumptions in real time. For example, if one primary school is spending significantly more on teaching materials than another of similar size, we can investigate and understand the reasons behind it.”
Looking ahead, Oasis plans to expand its use of IMP by introducing IMP ICFP, particularly in secondary schools. “We don’t prescribe release time, so having a tool that lets us compare different resourcing models is invaluable,” Sarah said. “t’s about giving leaders the data they need to make informed decisions.”
Sarah concluded: “The vision for our finance system goes beyond budgeting. We’re working toward an integrated platform that connects student data, HR, payroll, recruitment, and finance. However, there is no doubt that IMP is helping us to tell our leaders what they need to know regarding budget pressures, and keep our Board fully informed of the budget process throughout the year. Budget update is a standing agenda item – it explains the assumptions we have made versus the information that is available, for example on staff pay, and quantifies the impact of announcements. With IMP at the core of our financial planning, Oasis is better equipped to navigate future challenges and continue delivering exceptional education.”
Case study developed: September 2025
