Great Waldingfield Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School: school finances
Latest full year 2025-26, as a council-run school (CFR return, April to March). Suffolk · Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Large reserves
Holds £140k £688 per pupil in reserve, 11% of a year's income.
Status by year
- 2018-19 Large reserves reserve 8% or more of a year's income
- 2019-20 Healthy reserve between 3% and 8% of a year's income
- 2020-21 Large reserves reserve 8% or more of a year's income
- 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 £1.2m £6,054 per pupil and spending £1.3m £6,367 per pupil. Spending was £64k £314 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 | 203.0 | £1.3m £6,182 per pupil | £1.3m £6,367 per pupil | -£38k -£186 per pupil | £140k £688 per pupil |
| 2024-25 | 191.0 | £1.2m £6,344 per pupil | £1.2m £6,251 per pupil | +£18k +£93 per pupil | £177k £929 per pupil |
| 2023-24 | 199.0 | £1.1m £5,671 per pupil | £1.1m £5,575 per pupil | +£19k +£97 per pupil | £160k £802 per pupil |
| 2022-23 | 193.0 | £1.0m £5,397 per pupil | £1.0m £5,393 per pupil | +£770 +£4 per pupil | £140k £727 per pupil |
| 2021-22 | 195.0 | £1.0m £5,222 per pupil | £964k £4,943 per pupil | +£55k +£280 per pupil | £140k £716 per pupil |
| 2020-21 | 194.0 | £935k £4,818 per pupil | £884k £4,557 per pupil | +£50k +£260 per pupil | £85k £439 per pupil |
| 2019-20 | 186.0 | £816k £4,385 per pupil | £875k £4,703 per pupil | -£59k -£318 per pupil | £35k £186 per pupil |
| 2018-19 | 170.0 | £792k £4,660 per pupil | £765k £4,502 per pupil | +£27k +£158 per pupil | £94k £551 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 | £1.3m £6,182 per pupil | +33% +1% real | £7k | |
| Government funding | £1.2m £6,054 per pupil | +34% +2% real | £7k | |
| Special needs (SEN) funding | £69k £338 per pupil | +814% +590% real | £375 | |
| Pupil premium | £61k £302 per pupil | +51% +15% real | £294 | |
| Money the school raised itself | £89k £438 per pupil | +80% +37% real | £428 | |
| Donations (day-to-day) | £1k £6 per pupil | -79% -84% real | £31 | |
| Donations for buildings and equipment | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Facilities and services | £61k £302 per pupil | +278% +188% real | £260 | |
| Catering income | £14k £68 per pupil | +17% -11% real | £65 | |
| Other DfE grants | £73k £359 per pupil | +39% +6% real | £249 |
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 | £1.3m £6,367 per pupil | +41% +8% real | £7k | |
| Teachers | £616k £3,035 per pupil | +28% -2% real | £3k | |
| Supply staff | £23k £113 per pupil | +319% +214% real | £49 | |
| Support staff | £251k £1,235 per pupil | +77% +35% real | £1k | |
| Office and admin staff | £60k £294 per pupil | +37% +5% real | £345 | |
| Premises staff | £0 £0 per pupil | £168 | ||
| Catering staff | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Other staff costs | £74k £363 per pupil | +136% +80% real | £307 | |
| All staff costs | £1.0m £5,039 per pupil | +46% +11% real | £5k | |
| Premises | £54k £266 per pupil | +68% +29% real | £354 | |
| Energy | £14k £70 per pupil | +11% -16% real | £102 | |
| Rates, water and other building costs | £85k £421 per pupil | +17% -11% real | £660 | |
| Catering | £46k £227 per pupil | +9% -17% real | £329 | |
| Learning resources | £55k £269 per pupil | -12% -33% real | £309 | |
| Supplies and services | £129k £635 per pupil | +22% -7% real | £635 | |
| Bought-in services | £56k £276 per pupil | +83% +39% real | £240 |
Staff costs were 79% 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 £1.3m £6,367 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
- 2018-19 170.0
- 2019-20 186.0
- 2020-21 194.0
- 2021-22 195.0
- 2022-23 193.0
- 2023-24 199.0
- 2024-25 191.0
- 2025-26 203.0
Money raised by parents
No registered parents' association found for Great Waldingfield Church of England Voluntary Controlled 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
- 19% of pupils eligible for free school meals (median school: council 20%, England 22%)
- Neighbourhood deprivation decile 7 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- Income deprivation affecting children: decile 3 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- 28% of adults nearby hold a degree-level qualification
- 89% of nearby homes are owner-occupied
- 3% of nearby homes are social rented
Intake band 4 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 £639k £3,147 per pupil
- Support staff £251k £1,235 per pupil
- Buildings and grounds £54k £266 per pupil
- Energy £14k £70 per pupil
- Learning resources £55k £269 per pupil
- Everything else £280k £1,380 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 Great Waldingfield Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School's £140k £688 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 Great Waldingfield Church of England Voluntary 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.
- Newport Infant School and Nursery
- Salterhebble Junior and Infant School
- Newchurch Community Primary School
- St Gregory's Catholic Primary School, Chorley
- Stonebow Primary School Loughborough
Admissions and catchments for Great Waldingfield Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School on Schools in Reach · All Suffolk school finances · Schools in South Suffolk
- 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)