Member FAQs
Guidance Notes for Member Criteria
Criteria for all members
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Why do we ask this?
The Fair Education Alliance exists to tackle educational inequity. Socioeconomic disadvantage is the biggest determinant of outcomes for children and young people, so we want to ensure that our members are working in this space.
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Why do we ask this?
Our Impact Goals provide a shared framework for collaboration, learning and influence across the Alliance. Asking members to align with at least one goal helps ensure our collective activity is focused, coherent and impactful. It also makes it easier for members to connect with others working on similar challenges and contribute meaningfully to joint action.
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Why do we ask this?
Being an incorporated organisation provides assurance that members have appropriate governance, accountability and safeguarding structures in place. This is important for building trust across the Alliance and for engaging confidently with policymakers, funders and partners on behalf of the collective.
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Why do we ask this?
Active membership involves collaboration, data-sharing, events and collective advocacy. Please see our Member guide and commitments here. This criterion helps ensure organisations have the capacity to engage meaningfully with Alliance activity and meet our member commitments.
We recognise that some smaller organisations may still be able to do this, which is why we encourage you to contact us if you have fewer staff but feel you can fully participate.
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Why do we ask this?
The Fair Education Alliance focuses on influencing systems change in England. Requiring members to deliver work in England ensures our collective insights, evidence and advocacy are relevant to the systems, policymakers and communities we are seeking to influence.
Additional criteria for charities and social enterprises
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Why do we ask this?
Impact and learning are central to the Alliance’s values. We ask charities and social enterprises to monitor and evaluate their work so that our collective voice is grounded in evidence about what works to improve outcomes for children and young people. This strengthens our credibility with policymakers and funders, supports shared learning across the membership, and helps drive more effective solutions to educational inequity.
FAQs for Schools and MATS and Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs)
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We warmly welcome applications from schools and MATs that are committed to improving outcomes for disadvantaged pupils.
As part of our assessment, we will review publicly available information on the school.
Why do we review this?
We do this not to set a threshold or exclude organisations, but to better understand your context. This helps us ensure that membership is meaningful and that we can support you in ways that are relevant to your setting and the challenges you face.
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Data on pupil disadvantage helps us understand the level of need within your school or trust and how your work aligns with the Fair Education Alliance’s mission to tackle educational inequity.
Why do we ask this?
Socioeconomic disadvantage is the biggest driver of unequal educational outcomes. Understanding your context allows us to:
Identify where support and collaboration may have the greatest impact
Connect you with relevant organisations and opportunities
Build a clearer picture of need across the Alliance
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If an existing FEA member organisation already works with your school or trust, we encourage you to include them as a referee.
Why do we ask this?
A referee can provide insight into your commitment to tackling educational inequity in practice. It also helps strengthen connections across the Alliance and highlights where collaboration is already happening.
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If you are applying as a Multi-Academy Trust, you will need to confirm the number of academies within your trust as part of the eligibility form.
Why do we ask this?
Understanding the size and structure of your trust helps us:
Tailor engagement and support appropriately
Understand the scale of your reach and potential impact
Identify opportunities for collaboration across multiple settings
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Membership connects you to a network of organisations working to improve outcomes for disadvantaged children and young people. Through this, you can:
Access partnerships with delivery organisations
Share and learn from effective practice
Contribute to collective action and system change
Better target support for pupils who need it most
Why is this important?
Collaboration across schools, trusts and organisations is key to tackling educational inequity at scale. Membership helps ensure you are not working in isolation and can benefit from the collective expertise of the Alliance.
Enrolment FAQS
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The Member Directory is a shared resource that showcases all Fair Education Alliance member organisations. It includes key information about your organisation, your focus areas, and how others can connect with you.
It is designed to make it easier for members to find each other, build partnerships, and collaborate more effectively.
Why do we ask you to complete this?
The Directory helps remove barriers to collaboration by making it simple for members to identify relevant partners and expertise across the Alliance. It increases visibility of your work and helps ensure more organisations can connect and work together to improve outcomes for children and young people.
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An FEA Ambassador is a nominated representative from your organisation who acts as a connector between your team and the wider Alliance. Each member organisation is asked to nominate two Ambassadors.
Ambassadors:
Champion engagement with the Alliance internally
Share relevant opportunities, events and resources with colleagues
Help identify collaboration opportunities with other members
Act as a key contact for communications and partnership activity
Training and ongoing support are provided to help Ambassadors succeed in this role.
Why do we ask this?
Ambassadors help ensure engagement with the Alliance is not limited to one individual and that the benefits of membership are shared across your organisation. They play a vital role in strengthening collaboration and maximising collective impact.
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Your key contact should be one of your nominated FEA Ambassadors. These are the two individuals identified in your application who act as the main link between your organisation and the Alliance.
They should:
Have a good overview of your organisation’s work
Be well-connected internally
Be able to share opportunities and updates with colleagues
Why do we ask this?
Having clear, consistent points of contact helps streamline communication and ensures your organisation can fully engage with opportunities across the Alliance. It also reduces the risk of missed information and supports stronger collaboration between members.
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Our Membership Tools currently include two key elements: the Ecosystem Map and the Member Directory.
The Ecosystem Map helps visualise where members are working and who they are reaching
The Member Directory helps members find and connect with each other
These tools were co-created with members to support stronger collaboration, better targeting of support, and increased impact.
Why do we ask members to use these tools?
The tools help:
Increase the quality and quantity of collaboration between members
Reduce duplication and gaps in provision
Enable better targeting of support to the young people who need it most
Build a clearer picture of the collective impact of the Alliance
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To make the tools effective, we ask members to provide and maintain accurate organisational and delivery data. This includes:
Organisation details (e.g. name, focus areas, contact information)
Key contacts (your FEA Ambassadors, )
Delivery data for the Ecosystem Map (if you work directly in education settings in England)
URN (Unique Reference Number) data for the schools or settings you work with
Why do we ask this?
Accurate data allows the tools to provide meaningful insights and connections. In particular:
URN data ensures we can map activity accurately across schools and regions
Delivery data helps identify where support is reaching and where gaps may exist
Up-to-date contact information ensures members can connect quickly and effectively
This ultimately helps the Alliance target efforts where they are most needed and maximise impact for children and young people.