Caretaker shortages in the UK continue to impact trusts of every size. The education sector is feeling the effects of a wider shortage of school support staff, and for MATs, these operational headaches quickly multiply across multiple sites.
For school leadership teams, recruitment can take over two months. Research by TIB Services highlights the true scale of this drain on resources:
Beyond the administrative burden, this impacts pupils and staff directly. Without reliable site staff, classroom and wider school environments deteriorate, affecting focus, wellbeing, and attendance. Senior leaders often have to take on extra duties just to keep the school safe and open, diverting them from strategic improvement.
Recruiting for a single school is a challenge; managing estates staffing across a whole trust is a complex strategic operation.
When caretaker recruitment for academy trusts is handled in a fragmented way, it leads to one school with a well-maintained site, while another struggles with compliance gaps. A centralised approach ensures that every academy, regardless of its size or location, benefits from the same standard of operational reliability and a robust workforce.
Caretaker recruitment for academy trusts remains a key operational challenge, but it doesn’t have to be. By centralising recruitment, MATs can reduce duplication, improve efficiency, and strengthen consistency across their estates. This proactive strategy allows trusts to:
At TIB Services, we deliver specialist caretaker recruitment solutions built specifically for the operational structures and compliance needs of multi-academy trusts. With a nationwide network of 11,000+ skilled candidates, we can usually have temporary cover in place in less than 2 weeks.
Our service includes:
Every placement is aligned with your trust’s ethos, operational priorities, and the latest KCSIE requirements, ensuring consistency and compliance across every school.
To support the unique demands of MAT leadership, we have developed a Priority Service model specifically designed to handle the scale and geographical spread of multi-academy trusts. We move away from "one-off" fixes and instead work as an operational partner that understands your trust’s specific challenges, long-term goals, and the precise mix of skills required across your estate.
This partnership-led support includes:
Read our case studies to learn how other trusts have transformed their recruitment processes.
TIB Services acts as a strategic partner for MATs, maintaining compliance and reducing operational disruption across multiple estates. Trusts choose us for our ability to provide KCSIE-compliant cover typically within two weeks, ensuring trust-wide resilience and consistent support across all schools.