22 | AT TITUDES TO RISK IN EDUCATION | MONE Y
96%
OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS HAVE A RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGY
90% 87%
OF SCHOOLS ASSIGN RISK MANAGEMENT TO THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT
40%
...YET ONLY 13%
OF RISKS PERCEIVED AS IMPORTANT ARE FINANCIAL
MATTERS OF CONCERN
“There has historically been a real lack of information or insight into the risks facing the education sector. We were interested to learn, not just anecdotally, but more quantitatively, how independent schools – large and small, with pupils of varying ages – perceive the risks they face. What keeps their head teachers awake at night? Are governors more worried now than they were last year?” So says Robin Lucas, chairman of the
independent broker Lucas Fetes, in his introduction to the company’s new report, ‘Atitudes to Risk in Independent Schools’. The 2014 report is based on the findings of a survey of independent schools across the UK, which was commissioned by Lucas Fetes in association with Baker Tilly. The research uncovered new insights into how schools approach their risk management strategies. The result is a report which reveals their biggest concerns, uncovers the truth about confidence levels, finds out who is responsible for the risk strategy of a school, how they mitigate against potential risks and what they believe the future holds. Asking key questions such as ‘How
do bursars feel their school is protected against revenue risks?’, researchers spoke to 50 independent schools across the UK, including all age groups (3-18), differently sized schools and
different geographic locations. “The world of ‘risk’ is constantly
evolving, and never more so than within the independent education sector,” says Robin Lucas. “Independent schools are exposed to the same gamut of risks as their state peers but, unlike state schools, as commercial entities they face other, broader business risks, including reputation and in turn revenue. And, of course, no two schools are the same.” Providing analysis of the stand-out
findings within the context of today’s independent education landscape, the outcome of the report is a suggested paradigm shift – away from regarding risk as a barrier to success to instead approaching risk management as a means to deliver excellence within an increasingly competitive sector.
Major findings Schools appear to perceive themselves as being well informed and prepared about the risks they face, with 96 percent stating they have a formal risk management strategy. But the research highlighted that schools’ approach to risk management tends to be operational rather than strategic: an exercise in achieving a required level of legislative compliance. When asked what’s included within their strategy, all but a few cited child
30% CITED RISKS
TO REPUTATION AS A CONCERN
...BUT
DON'T FEEL EQUIPPED TO DEAL WITH THEM
33%
Independent schools are exposed to a wide range of risks, but are they prepared to meet them? A recent report by independent broker Lucas Fetes suggests that many are not
welfare, health and safety, buildings and assets and school trips – all risks that schools are required by law to manage. More telling are the types of risk that
schools are failing to manage proactively. The two areas highlighted as posing the most significant threat were risks to revenue and reputation (i.e. long-term business viability). These are areas in which risk management solutions can’t simply be prescribed via legislation and instead have to be more bespoke to the school. Schools readily admit to being ill-equipped to deal with these risks. Almost a quarter don’t believe that revenue-related risks are covered by insurance and 18 percent believe the same is true of reputational risks. Other risks that schools cite as being
ones they feel ill-equipped to manage are also non-regulated, such as business continuity and emerging risks. Up to 38 percent of schools are ill-equipped to manage business continuity risk and 15 percent do not even include business continuity in their risk management strategy. This should be of particular concern – if a business continuity process needs to be implemented, the school will need a robust plan in order to keep its doors open. In spite of the rise in cyber crime and, in particular, cyber bullying, 31 percent
OF SCHOOLS HAVE NEVER, OR ONLY RARELY BEEN ASKED BY PARENTS ABOUT THEIR RISK STRATEGY
OF SCHOOLS DO NOT INVOLVE PARENTS IN DEVELOPING THE RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGY
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48