St Luke's Church of England Controlled Primary School: school finances
Latest full year 2025-26, as a council-run school (CFR return, April to March). Essex · Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Large reserves
Holds £244k £914 per pupil in reserve, 14% of a year's income.
Status by year
- 2018-19 Large reserves reserve 8% or more of a year's income
- 2019-20 Large reserves same as the year before
- 2020-21 Large reserves same as the year before
- 2021-22 Large reserves same as the year before
- 2022-23 Large reserves same as the year before
- 2023-24 Large reserves same as the year before
- 2024-25 Large reserves same as the year before
- 2025-26 Large reserves same as the year before
Government funding vs spending per pupil
In 2025-26, government funding was £1.6m £6,008 per pupil and spending £1.8m £6,563 per pupil. Spending was £148k £555 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 | 267.0 | £1.7m £6,485 per pupil | £1.8m £6,563 per pupil | -£21k -£78 per pupil | £244k £914 per pupil |
| 2024-25 | 265.0 | £1.7m £6,596 per pupil | £1.6m £6,057 per pupil | +£143k +£538 per pupil | £265k £999 per pupil |
| 2023-24 | 262.0 | £1.5m £5,830 per pupil | £1.6m £5,956 per pupil | -£33k -£125 per pupil | £122k £466 per pupil |
| 2022-23 | 246.0 | £1.3m £5,458 per pupil | £1.4m £5,709 per pupil | -£62k -£251 per pupil | £155k £630 per pupil |
| 2021-22 | 232.0 | £1.4m £5,881 per pupil | £1.3m £5,648 per pupil | +£54k +£233 per pupil | £217k £934 per pupil |
| 2020-21 | 259.0 | £1.3m £5,062 per pupil | £1.3m £4,995 per pupil | +£17k +£66 per pupil | £163k £628 per pupil |
| 2019-20 | 263.0 | £1.3m £5,107 per pupil | £1.3m £5,084 per pupil | +£6k +£23 per pupil | £145k £553 per pupil |
| 2018-19 | 269.0 | £1.4m £5,176 per pupil | £1.3m £4,930 per pupil | +£66k +£246 per pupil | £139k £518 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 | £1.7m £6,485 per pupil | +25% -4% real | £7k | |
| Government funding | £1.6m £6,008 per pupil | +33% +1% real | £6k | |
| Special needs (SEN) funding | £103k £384 per pupil | +127% +74% real | £334 | |
| Pupil premium | £48k £181 per pupil | +12% -14% real | £224 | |
| Money the school raised itself | £132k £496 per pupil | -25% -43% real | £462 | |
| Donations (day-to-day) | £72k £269 per pupil | +2% -22% real | £15 | |
| Donations for buildings and equipment | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Facilities and services | £22k £81 per pupil | +29% -1% real | £163 | |
| Catering income | £13k £49 per pupil | -60% -70% real | £5 | |
| Other DfE grants | £69k £258 per pupil | +3% -22% real | £274 |
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 | £1.8m £6,563 per pupil | +33% +2% real | £7k | |
| Teachers | £817k £3,058 per pupil | +45% +10% real | £3k | |
| Supply staff | £19k £71 per pupil | -46% -59% real | £102 | |
| Support staff | £366k £1,372 per pupil | +32% +1% real | £1k | |
| Office and admin staff | £65k £242 per pupil | +6% -19% real | £283 | |
| Premises staff | £75k £282 per pupil | +97% +51% real | £166 | |
| Catering staff | £38k £143 per pupil | -5% -28% real | £0 | |
| Other staff costs | £45k £170 per pupil | -6% -28% real | £202 | |
| All staff costs | £1.3m £4,939 per pupil | +33% +1% real | £5k | |
| Premises | £92k £345 per pupil | +57% +19% real | £323 | |
| Energy | £32k £119 per pupil | +133% +80% real | £86 | |
| Rates, water and other building costs | £162k £608 per pupil | +21% -8% real | £570 | |
| Catering | £67k £252 per pupil | -4% -27% real | £294 | |
| Learning resources | £87k £325 per pupil | +28% -2% real | £252 | |
| Supplies and services | £179k £671 per pupil | +40% +7% real | £516 | |
| Bought-in services | £77k £289 per pupil | +66% +27% real | £188 |
Staff costs were 75% 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 £1.8m £6,563 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
- 2018-19 269.0
- 2019-20 263.0
- 2020-21 259.0
- 2021-22 232.0
- 2022-23 246.0
- 2023-24 262.0
- 2024-25 265.0
- 2025-26 267.0
Money raised by parents
| School year | Raised | Spent |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 year to August 2026 | £23k | £22k |
| 2025-26 year to August 2025 | £23k £87 per pupil | £23k £87 per pupil |
| 2024-25 year to August 2024 | £10k £36 per pupil | £5k £20 per pupil |
| 2023-24 year to August 2023 | £4k £15 per pupil | £9k £36 per pupil |
| 2022-23 year to August 2022 | £7k £28 per pupil | £2k £8 per pupil |
- ST LUKES CHURCH SCHOOL PARENT AND TEACHERS ASSOCIATION (charity 283983) Latest return: £23k in the year to August 2026. It reports 10 volunteers. Annual return due 30 June 2027.
Each return is placed in the school year that holds the end of the charity's financial year, and per-pupil figures use that year's pupils. A parents' association's money is its own and isn't in the school's accounts above. Money a parents' association gives the school can also appear in the school's own accounts as donations, so the two can overlap. They are shown separately here and never added together.
Across England, the typical registered parents' association raised £50 per pupil in 2025-26.
Intake and area
- 11% of pupils eligible for free school meals (median school: council 17%, England 22%)
- Neighbourhood deprivation decile 7 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- Income deprivation affecting children: decile 5 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- 24% of adults nearby hold a degree-level qualification
- 77% of nearby homes are owner-occupied
- 8% 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 £835k £3,129 per pupil
- Support staff £366k £1,372 per pupil
- Buildings and grounds £92k £345 per pupil
- Energy £32k £119 per pupil
- Learning resources £87k £325 per pupil
- Everything else £340k £1,273 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.
- What is St Luke's Church of England Controlled Primary School's £244k £914 per pupil reserve being kept for, and is there a timetable to spend it?
- How much does the PTA (or friends' association) raise each year, and what does it pay for?
- Is any of it already committed, for example to building work or to cover a planned overspend?
- How does St Luke's Church of England Controlled 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)
- Could some be spent on current pupils without putting future years at risk?
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.
- Cranwell Primary School (Foundation)
- The Flitch Green Academy
- Mornington Primary School
- Belvidere Primary School
- Pound Hill Infant Academy
Admissions and catchments for St Luke's Church of England Controlled Primary School on Schools in Reach · All Essex school finances · Schools in Witham
- 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
- Charity Commission register, 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)