Catherington Church of England Infant School: school finances
Latest full year 2025-26, as a council-run school (CFR return, April to March). Hampshire · Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Large reserves
Holds £95k £1,078 per pupil in reserve, 14% of a year's income. It has been drawing on it for 2 years.
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 £615k £6,988 per pupil and spending £686k £7,796 per pupil. Spending was £71k £808 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 | 88.0 | £669k £7,605 per pupil | £686k £7,796 per pupil | -£17k -£191 per pupil | £95k £1,078 per pupil |
| 2024-25 | 85.0 | £617k £7,260 per pupil | £629k £7,398 per pupil | -£12k -£139 per pupil | £112k £1,314 per pupil |
| 2023-24 | 84.0 | £603k £7,177 per pupil | £590k £7,024 per pupil | +£13k +£153 per pupil | £123k £1,470 per pupil |
| 2022-23 | 89.0 | £571k £6,411 per pupil | £577k £6,483 per pupil | -£6k -£72 per pupil | £111k £1,242 per pupil |
| 2021-22 | 82.0 | £522k £6,367 per pupil | £517k £6,306 per pupil | +£5k +£61 per pupil | £117k £1,427 per pupil |
| 2020-21 | 79.0 | £488k £6,174 per pupil | £472k £5,972 per pupil | +£16k +£202 per pupil | £112k £1,418 per pupil |
| 2019-20 | 80.0 | £508k £6,350 per pupil | £460k £5,755 per pupil | +£48k +£595 per pupil | £96k £1,201 per pupil |
| 2018-19 | 89.0 | £498k £5,601 per pupil | £476k £5,349 per pupil | +£22k +£252 per pupil | £48k £545 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 | £669k £7,605 per pupil | +36% +4% real | £8k | |
| Government funding | £615k £6,988 per pupil | +29% -2% real | £8k | |
| Special needs (SEN) funding | £7k £79 per pupil | +4% -20% real | £275 | |
| Pupil premium | £15k £172 per pupil | +856% +617% real | £138 | |
| Money the school raised itself | £55k £625 per pupil | +253% +169% real | £534 | |
| Donations (day-to-day) | £25k £280 per pupil | +148% +88% real | £75 | |
| Donations for buildings and equipment | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Facilities and services | £27k £305 per pupil | +1171% +884% real | £202 | |
| Catering income | £0 £0 per pupil | -100% -100% real | £87 | |
| Other DfE grants | £49k £553 per pupil | -9% -31% real | £382 |
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 | £686k £7,796 per pupil | +46% +11% real | £8k | |
| Teachers | £321k £3,653 per pupil | +72% +31% real | £4k | |
| Supply staff | £4k £45 per pupil | -79% -84% real | £50 | |
| Support staff | £121k £1,372 per pupil | +110% +60% real | £1k | |
| Office and admin staff | £46k £521 per pupil | +41% +7% real | £461 | |
| Premises staff | £9k £104 per pupil | -24% -42% real | £0 | |
| Catering staff | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Other staff costs | £22k £249 per pupil | -35% -51% real | £310 | |
| All staff costs | £517k £5,879 per pupil | +56% +19% real | £7k | |
| Premises | £34k £384 per pupil | +42% +8% real | £410 | |
| Energy | £5k £60 per pupil | +33% +0% real | £127 | |
| Rates, water and other building costs | £64k £723 per pupil | +26% -4% real | £692 | |
| Catering | £41k £469 per pupil | +10% -16% real | £353 | |
| Learning resources | £45k £513 per pupil | +78% +36% real | £437 | |
| Supplies and services | £71k £810 per pupil | +11% -15% real | £830 | |
| Bought-in services | £17k £193 per pupil | -50% -62% real | £236 |
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 £686k £7,796 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 89.0
- 2019-20 80.0
- 2020-21 79.0
- 2021-22 82.0
- 2022-23 89.0
- 2023-24 84.0
- 2024-25 85.0
- 2025-26 88.0
Income that passed straight through
In 2025-26, this school's income rose by +£52k +£592 per pupil on the year before, and its staff costs by +£41k +£468 per pupil. Much of the extra money may have gone straight out again on higher pay, pension and National Insurance costs.
About £2.3 billion of the rise in school funding since 2019–20 was grants to cover higher employer pension and National Insurance costs, not extra spending power. (IFS, p. 50)
Money raised by parents
| School year | Raised | Spent |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 year to August 2025 | £12k £135 per pupil | £5k £60 per pupil |
| 2024-25 year to August 2024 | £11k £132 per pupil | £15k £177 per pupil |
| 2023-24 year to August 2023 | £9k £106 per pupil | £6k £67 per pupil |
| 2022-23 year to August 2022 | £4k £44 per pupil | £9k £107 per pupil |
| 2021-22 year to August 2021 | £6k £68 per pupil | £4k £44 per pupil |
- CATHERINGTON SCHOOL ASSOCIATION (charity 1045305) Latest return: £12k £135 per pupil in the year to August 2025. It reports 25 volunteers. Annual return due 30 June 2026.
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
- 7% of pupils eligible for free school meals (median school: council 17%, England 22%)
- Neighbourhood deprivation decile 10 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- Income deprivation affecting children: decile 9 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- 38% of adults nearby hold a degree-level qualification
- 89% of nearby homes are owner-occupied
- 3% of nearby homes are social rented
Intake band 1 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 £325k £3,698 per pupil
- Support staff £121k £1,372 per pupil
- Buildings and grounds £34k £384 per pupil
- Energy £5k £60 per pupil
- Learning resources £45k £513 per pupil
- Everything else £156k £1,769 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 Catherington Church of England Infant School's £95k £1,078 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 Catherington Church of England Infant 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.
- Stratford St Mary Primary School
- Dunswell Primary School
- Urchfont Church of England Primary School
- Kirkbampton CofE School
- St Patrick's CofE School
Admissions and catchments for Catherington Church of England Infant School on Schools in Reach · All Hampshire school finances · Schools in East Hampshire
- 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)