St Giles' Church of England Primary School: school finances
Latest full year 2025-26, as a council-run school (CFR return, April to March). Essex · Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Healthy
Holds £114k £572 per pupil in reserve, 6% of a year's income. It has spent more than it received for 2 years, so watch the trend.
Status by year
- 2018-19 Healthy reserve between 3% and 8% of a year's income
- 2019-20 Healthy same as the year before
- 2020-21 Healthy same as the year before
- 2021-22 Large reserves reserve 8% or more of a year's income
- 2022-23 Large reserves same as the year before
- 2023-24 Large reserves same as the year before
- 2024-25 Healthy reserve between 3% and 8% of a year's income
- 2025-26 Healthy same as the year before
Government funding vs spending per pupil
In 2025-26, government funding was £1.8m £9,061 per pupil and spending £1.9m £9,599 per pupil. Spending was £107k £538 per pupil more than government funding; the difference came from other income, such as lettings, catering or donations, or from the school's reserve.
Funding is the money a school receives; spending is what it pays out. The two differ when a school adds to or draws on its savings, and because some money is spent on its pupils by someone else: the council (for example special needs top-ups and transport) or, for academies, the trust's central team. (IFS, pp. 7, 10, 46, 52, 54)
Government funding is the academy accounts line "grant funding from government" in academy (AAR) years and the CFR grant funding total in council-run years. The two are not strictly comparable: CFR line I07 can include some money that is not from government.
Real terms: in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026).
Reserve per pupil by year
Real terms: in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026).
| Year | Pupils | Income | Spending | In-year balance | Reserve at year end |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 199.0 | £1.9m £9,484 per pupil | £1.9m £9,599 per pupil | -£23k -£115 per pupil | £114k £572 per pupil |
| 2024-25 | 193.0 | £1.9m £9,590 per pupil | £1.9m £9,842 per pupil | -£49k -£252 per pupil | £137k £708 per pupil |
| 2023-24 | 92.0 | £717k £7,790 per pupil | £703k £7,644 per pupil | +£13k +£146 per pupil | £86k £940 per pupil |
| 2022-23 | 95.0 | £609k £6,409 per pupil | £609k £6,414 per pupil | -£488 -£5 per pupil | £73k £769 per pupil |
| 2021-22 | 97.0 | £595k £6,135 per pupil | £559k £5,765 per pupil | +£36k +£371 per pupil | £74k £758 per pupil |
| 2020-21 | 101.0 | £677k £6,700 per pupil | £662k £6,557 per pupil | +£14k +£143 per pupil | £38k £372 per pupil |
| 2019-20 | 94.0 | £643k £6,839 per pupil | £659k £7,006 per pupil | -£16k -£167 per pupil | £23k £246 per pupil |
| 2018-19 | 98.0 | £748k £7,632 per pupil | £619k £6,317 per pupil | +£129k +£1,315 per pupil | £39k £396 per pupil |
Where the money comes from
| Line | 2025-26 | Trend per pupil | Change per pupil since 2018-19 | Similar schools (median per pupil) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total income | £1.9m £9,484 per pupil | +24% -5% real | £7k | |
| Government funding | £1.8m £9,061 per pupil | +70% +30% real | £7k | |
| Special needs (SEN) funding | £74k £374 per pupil | +379% +267% real | £267 | |
| Pupil premium | £43k £216 per pupil | +39% +6% real | £269 | |
| Money the school raised itself | £84k £423 per pupil | -82% -86% real | £386 | |
| Donations (day-to-day) | £8k £42 per pupil | +600% +425% real | £36 | |
| Donations for buildings and equipment | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Facilities and services | £7k £34 per pupil | -98% -99% real | £120 | |
| Catering income | £21k £108 per pupil | +52% +16% real | £67 | |
| Other DfE grants | £78k £394 per pupil | -0% -24% real | £273 |
Other DfE grants is a container line. It includes the grants that cover higher employer pension and National Insurance costs, which cannot be separated out, so no figure is shown for them on their own. Not every rise in a school's income is extra spending power. When the government raised what schools pay as employers into staff pensions and National Insurance, it gave schools grants to cover the bill. The IFS describes this as extra money to pay for extra outgoings, with no change in real resources. About £2.3 billion of the growth in school funding between 2019–20 and 2025–26 was this kind of grant. So when a school's income jumps, check whether its staff costs jumped by the same amount: the money may simply have passed through. (IFS, p. 50)
Where it goes
| Line | 2025-26 | Trend per pupil | Change per pupil since 2018-19 | Similar schools (median per pupil) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total spending | £1.9m £9,599 per pupil | +52% +16% real | £7k | |
| Teachers | £954k £4,794 per pupil | +54% +18% real | £3k | |
| Supply staff | £1k £7 per pupil | -88% -91% real | £41 | |
| Support staff | £322k £1,617 per pupil | +39% +6% real | £2k | |
| Office and admin staff | £141k £707 per pupil | +107% +58% real | £343 | |
| Premises staff | £56k £281 per pupil | +216% +140% real | £133 | |
| Catering staff | £61k £307 per pupil | +131% +76% real | £0 | |
| Other staff costs | £33k £167 per pupil | -9% -30% real | £243 | |
| All staff costs | £1.5m £7,327 per pupil | +50% +14% real | £6k | |
| Premises | £86k £434 per pupil | +94% +48% real | £399 | |
| Energy | £32k £163 per pupil | +133% +79% real | £104 | |
| Rates, water and other building costs | £194k £975 per pupil | +100% +53% real | £663 | |
| Catering | £102k £512 per pupil | +110% +60% real | £364 | |
| Learning resources | £69k £347 per pupil | +90% +45% real | £311 | |
| Supplies and services | £172k £863 per pupil | +20% -9% real | £637 | |
| Bought-in services | £90k £452 per pupil | -12% -33% real | £211 |
Staff costs were 76% of this school's spending in 2025-26. Across England, over 80% of schools' costs are staff costs. (IFS, p. 63)
In 2025-26 prices, this school spent £1.9m £9,599 per pupil in 2025-26. Across England, primary schools are expected to spend about £7,000 per pupil in 2025–26. (IFS, p. 7)
Pupils by year
- 2018-19 98.0
- 2019-20 94.0
- 2020-21 101.0
- 2021-22 97.0
- 2022-23 95.0
- 2023-24 92.0
- 2024-25 193.0
- 2025-26 199.0
Money raised by parents
No registered parents' association found for St Giles' Church of England Primary School. Charities with an income of £5,000 or less a year don't have to register with the Charity Commission, so many schools have an active PTA or friends' group that isn't on the register.
Across England, the typical registered parents' association raised £50 per pupil in 2025-26.
Intake and area
- 15% of pupils eligible for free school meals (median school: council 17%, England 22%)
- Neighbourhood deprivation decile 6 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- Income deprivation affecting children: decile 8 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- 30% of adults nearby hold a degree-level qualification
- 76% of nearby homes are owner-occupied
- 12% of nearby homes are social rented
Intake band 2 of 5 nationally, combining free-school-meal eligibility and the deprivation of the school's neighbourhood (1 = least disadvantaged, 5 = most).
Context, not a judgement: schools with different intakes get different funding and face different costs.
How my school's money is split
For pupils: out of every pound the school spent in 2025-26, here is roughly where it went, with the amount for each pupil.
- Teachers £955k £4,801 per pupil
- Support staff £322k £1,617 per pupil
- Buildings and grounds £86k £434 per pupil
- Energy £32k £163 per pupil
- Learning resources £69k £347 per pupil
- Everything else £445k £2,237 per pupil
National context
- Primary pupil numbers in England are expected to fall by over 300,000 (about 8%) between 2024–25 and 2030–31. (IFS, p. 19)
- Council-run primary schools spend about £400 (6%) more per pupil than primary academies, and council-run secondaries about £300 (4%) more, partly because trusts spend some money centrally. (IFS, p. 56)
- Pupil premium is £1,515 a year per eligible primary pupil and £1,075 per eligible secondary pupil, over 16% lower in real terms than in 2015–16. (IFS, p. 51)
- Mainstream schools are expected to fund the first £6,000 a year of extra support for a pupil with special needs from their own budget. (IFS, p. 46)
Questions to ask the school
Useful for parents, governors and PTFA committees.
- How much does the PTA (or friends' association) raise each year, and what does it pay for?
- How does St Giles' Church of England Primary School's spending per pupil compare with similar schools, and why? Why ask: Nationally, primaries spend about £7,000 and secondaries about £7,800 per pupil in 2025–26. (IFS, p. 7)
Check at source
Every figure here comes from the school's published return. Check it on the DfE benchmarking page for this school, and see how the figures are worked out.
Similar schools: the closest in phase, size and share of pupils on free school meals.
- St Christopher's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy
- Rowlands Gill Community Primary School
- Carlton Miniott Primary Academy
- Cotford St Luke Primary School
- Colebrook Junior School
Admissions and catchments for St Giles' Church of England Primary School on Schools in Reach · All Essex school finances · Schools in Braintree
- DfE Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool data: CFR returns for council-run schools (April to March) and academy accounts returns (September to August), Open Government Licence v3.0
- Get Information about Schools, Open Government Licence v3.0
- National context: IFS, Annual report on education spending in England: 2025–26 (January 2026); IFS figures are in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, November 2025)
- Real-terms figures on this page: in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)