St James Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy: school finances
Heading for deficit
Has spent more than it received for 2 years running; at that rate its £61k reserve runs out in about 2 years.
Latest full year 2024-25, as a council-run school (CFR return, April–March). Tameside · Primary · Academy converter.
Earlier years come from this school's return before it became an academy (a different DfE number).
A 2025-26 return is published too, but it covers part of a year or leaves out the income or reserve figure, so the latest complete year is shown.
Reserve at the end of each year, 2018-19 to 2024-25
Income and spending, 2018-19 to 2024-25
Income Spending
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Income | Spending | Balance | Reserve | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018-19 | £1.2m | £1.2m | -£32k | £69k | 158 |
2019-20 | £1.1m | £1.2m | -£83k | -£14k | 168 |
2020-21 | £1.2m | £1.2m | +£40k | £26k | 184 |
2021-22 | £1.4m | £1.2m | +£111k | £137k | 193 |
2022-23 | £1.5m | £1.4m | +£124k | £261k | 188 |
2023-24 | £1.4m | £1.5m | -£116k | £145k | 197 |
2024-25 | £1.7m | £1.8m | -£84k | £61k | 194 |
Compared with similar schools
Similar schools are the 30 primary schools outside London closest in size and in the share of pupils on free school meals. Its reserve, as a share of income, is higher than 33% of them. It spends £9,306 a pupil in total; similar schools typically spend £7,865.
This school Middle half of similar schools Similar schools’ median
Show the comparison as a table
| Spending per pupil | This school | Similar schools (median) | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|
Teachers | £3,972 | £3,524 | £3,293–£3,882 |
Support staff (e.g. TAs) | £1,619 | £1,529 | £1,358–£1,729 |
Supply staff | £528 | £193 | £114–£437 |
Admin and clerical | £336 | £336 | £290–£405 |
Premises | £502 | £456 | £380–£531 |
Energy | £129 | £137 | £119–£175 |
Learning resources & ICT | £580 | £299 | £228–£371 |
Bought-in services | £398 | £227 | £113–£470 |
Compare side by side with the 3 most similar schools
Which schools are these?
- Brookfield Community Primary School Healthy
- Oakview Primary School Large reserves
- Hetton Primary School Large reserves
- Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Primary School, Church Tight
- East Whitby Primary Academy Healthy
- Mountford Manor Primary School Healthy
- St Columba's Catholic Primary School In deficit
- Countess Wear Primary School Tight
- Thorns Primary School Healthy
- St Peter's CofE Primary Academy, Mansfield Large reserves
- Long Knowle Primary School In deficit
- Summerville Primary School Large reserves
Where the money comes from, 2024-25
| Source | Amount | Per pupil |
|---|---|---|
Government grants | £1.6m | £8,400 |
SEN funding (part of grants) | £35k | £181 |
Pupil premium (part of grants) | £134k | £687 |
Self-generated (lettings, catering, donations) | £120k | £615 |
Questions to ask the school
Useful for parents, governors and PTA committees.
- What is the plan to stop spending more than the school receives each year?
- Spending on supply staff is £528 a pupil, against a typical £193 for similar schools. What's behind that?
- Spending on learning resources & ict is £580 a pupil, against a typical £299 for similar schools. What's behind that?
Check these figures
Every figure here comes from the school's published return to the DfE. Check it on the DfE benchmarking page for this school, and see how the status is worked out.
Admissions, Ofsted and results for St James Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy · All Tameside school finances