On 6th December 2022, West Lakes Multi-Academy Trust changed its name to Changing Lives Learning Trust.
Chief Executive, Jonathan Johnson OBE said: “The decision to change our name has been carefully and meticulously planned over the past twelve months because it was important that our name reflected our growth. That said, we know where we came from and West Lakes Academy’s motto of ‘Changing Lives through Learning’ was something that came out strongly in our community-wide consultation.”
He added: “The entire trust community were consulted on the new name and it arose out of their suggestions. The new logo was a Trust-wide competition and it arose out of the three designs from children in our primary schools. We believe it’s a new name and new identity that has arisen from the collective efforts of those we seek to serve and we are immensely grateful to them for their involvement.”
He also added: “Thanks to the three logo competition winners, the logo represents children being held in the hands of the school and the Trust and this powerful message is a central theme. The four icons represent the four values of Respect, Resilience, Achievement and Opportunity. The use of gold represents the highest of standards while using green to represent how the “fertile ground” of Respect and Resilience can stretch beyond the horizon to the blue sky of Achievement and Opportunity. The stem of the plant rising through the middle showed a wonderful path that led to changing lives through learning; a journey of discovery but because life is not a straight line, the winding path has, always at the top of it, the hands supporting those in our care; children and adults alike.”
Michelle Pearse, Chair of Trust Board, said: “We are indebted to everyone who engaged in our extensive consultations in what is a truly Trust- and community-wide endeavour that has seen us redefine who we are. As part of the process Trustees were also keen to explore a more traditional heraldic logo. The colours are intentionally understated because celebrating the academies in our Trust is more important than the Trust itself and the more muted colours allow the vibrancy of our individual academies to shine through. We believe that this will become the recognised brand identity of our Trust for generations to come.”
She added: “We are also grateful to the sponsor organisations (Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, Sellafield Ltd, University of Central Lancashire) for supporting our decision to reflect our vision and the schools we serve with this significant change. The schools and communities in our care will keep their own logos, colours and identity; only the Trust’s logo and name are changing.”
