LEO Academy Trust
Growth. Reimagined.
LEO Academy Trust serves over 6,000 pupils from across the London Borough of Sutton and Surrey. The Trust was formed in 2015 and since then, has developed a family of great learning communities formed from twelve primary schools and grown a culture of excellence for all pupils, staff, and local communities.
Working with LEO Academy Trust, we aligned their ambitious growth strategy into a connected brand and communications programme to promote the introduction of new nursery provision at every school site, help secure 3 new schools within 18 months and position as a sector-leader in PedTech and high-quality digital provision.
As part of the discovery phase to kick off our partnership, we undertook a comprehensive review and deep dive throughout the organisation to identify the key principles and driving factors to inform the brand refresh for the Trust.
At its core, LEO Academy Trust still very much stood for what the name was built on:
Learning. Excellence. Opportunity.
Bringing this to the forefront in both visual identity & messaging formed the basis of the brand strategy, alongside the opportunity to emphasise the Trust’s pioneering approach to utilising technology with a digital-inspired visual language.
This clarity and alignment would subsequently help articulate what differentiates LEO, creating the opportunity to turn that story into communications capable of driving growth.
Insight
Brand Identity
We developed a refreshed brand word mark, shifting emphasis to the Trust vision, as well as a refined colour palette and brand font to compliment.
Expanding out, we implemented a flexible bento-style identity system, leaning into the PedTech strength. This also worked to build a wider brand architecture that allows for flexibility but would also give a uniform and easily adaptable approach across Trust and Academy materials.
Action
Bringing the brand to life
To support new nursery provision, Assembly created a Trust-wide admissions campaign spanning brand development, messaging, film, drone content, paid social, PR, web and out-of-home advertising – bringing benefits including Forest School, wraparound care, funded places and PedTech to life for prospective families.
To accelerate Trust growth, we sharpened LEO’s proposition for prospective schools and created a long-term engagement programme combining targeted senior-leadership communications, digital and physical materials, thought leadership and flagship creative campaigns.
Pupil voices sat at the heart of the story, with a film captured across LEO schools showcasing everything from inclusion and wellbeing to sport, music, outdoor learning and digital innovation.
Positioning as a sector-leader for Pedtech
To establish LEO as a PedTech leader, we turned complex educational technology into accessible, engaging content.
A six-part animation series, supported by blogs, thought leadership, LinkedIn activity, paid social and the Trust’s annual conference, demonstrated how technology could improve learning, accessibility and inclusion – making PedTech tangible rather than technical.
We have secured the following successes:
Increase in EYFS applications across the Trust in comparison to predicted intakes.
Growth of the Trust, securing three new schools within the first two years.
Exceeding commercial revenue generation targets of schools and MATs engaging with the LEO PedTech provision across a two year period.