Cooper and Jordan Church of England Primary School: school finances
Latest full year 2025-26, as a council-run school (CFR return, April to March). Walsall · Primary · Voluntary aided school
Large reserves
Holds £271k £582 per pupil in reserve, 9% of a year's income.
Status by year
- 2018-19 Healthy reserve between 3% and 8% of a year's income
- 2019-20 Large reserves reserve 8% or more of a year's income
- 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 £2.8m £5,963 per pupil and spending £3.0m £6,446 per pupil. Spending was £225k £483 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 | 465.0 | £3.0m £6,556 per pupil | £3.0m £6,446 per pupil | +£51k +£110 per pupil | £271k £582 per pupil |
| 2024-25 | 467.0 | £2.7m £5,857 per pupil | £2.7m £5,871 per pupil | -£6k -£14 per pupil | £220k £471 per pupil |
| 2023-24 | 447.0 | £2.6m £5,797 per pupil | £2.6m £5,857 per pupil | -£27k -£60 per pupil | £226k £506 per pupil |
| 2022-23 | 463.5 | £2.6m £5,608 per pupil | £2.6m £5,569 per pupil | +£18k +£39 per pupil | £253k £546 per pupil |
| 2021-22 | 460.0 | £2.4m £5,137 per pupil | £2.3m £5,090 per pupil | +£22k +£47 per pupil | £235k £511 per pupil |
| 2020-21 | 458.5 | £2.2m £4,722 per pupil | £2.2m £4,739 per pupil | -£8k -£17 per pupil | £213k £465 per pupil |
| 2019-20 | 458.5 | £2.1m £4,614 per pupil | £2.0m £4,446 per pupil | +£77k +£168 per pupil | £221k £482 per pupil |
| 2018-19 | 466.0 | £2.0m £4,357 per pupil | £2.0m £4,358 per pupil | -£261 -£1 per pupil | £144k £309 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 | £3.0m £6,556 per pupil | +50% +15% real | £7k | |
| Government funding | £2.8m £5,963 per pupil | +47% +12% real | £6k | |
| Special needs (SEN) funding | £58k £125 per pupil | +62% +24% real | £307 | |
| Pupil premium | £95k £205 per pupil | +37% +4% real | £241 | |
| Money the school raised itself | £276k £592 per pupil | +103% +55% real | £354 | |
| Donations (day-to-day) | £150k £322 per pupil | +62% +24% real | £20 | |
| Donations for buildings and equipment | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Facilities and services | £113k £242 per pupil | +163% +100% real | £103 | |
| Catering income | £0 £0 per pupil | £73 | ||
| Other DfE grants | £99k £212 per pupil | -11% -32% real | £216 |
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 | £3.0m £6,446 per pupil | +48% +13% real | £7k | |
| Teachers | £1.2m £2,662 per pupil | +42% +9% real | £3k | |
| Supply staff | £45k £98 per pupil | +100% +51% real | £34 | |
| Support staff | £771k £1,657 per pupil | +77% +35% real | £2k | |
| Office and admin staff | £143k £307 per pupil | +67% +27% real | £246 | |
| Premises staff | £98k £210 per pupil | +4100% +3400% real | £187 | |
| Catering staff | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Other staff costs | £110k £237 per pupil | -9% -30% real | £252 | |
| All staff costs | £2.3m £4,960 per pupil | +50% +15% real | £5k | |
| Premises | £241k £518 per pupil | +67% +27% real | £339 | |
| Energy | £72k £154 per pupil | +75% +34% real | £80 | |
| Rates, water and other building costs | £233k £501 per pupil | +35% +3% real | £524 | |
| Catering | £108k £233 per pupil | +23% -6% real | £283 | |
| Learning resources | £92k £198 per pupil | -18% -38% real | £270 | |
| Supplies and services | £210k £451 per pupil | +19% -9% real | £448 | |
| Bought-in services | £93k £200 per pupil | +60% +22% real | £169 |
Staff costs were 77% 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 £3.0m £6,446 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
- 2018-19 466.0
- 2019-20 458.5
- 2020-21 458.5
- 2021-22 460.0
- 2022-23 463.5
- 2023-24 447.0
- 2024-25 467.0
- 2025-26 465.0
Money raised by parents
| School year | Raised | Spent |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 year to August 2025 | £5k £11 per pupil | £6k £13 per pupil |
| 2024-25 year to August 2024 | £14k £29 per pupil | £7k £15 per pupil |
| 2023-24 year to August 2023 | £5k £12 per pupil | £6k £14 per pupil |
| 2022-23 year to August 2022 | £6k £13 per pupil | £2k £4 per pupil |
| 2021-22 year to August 2021 | £269 £1 per pupil | £4k £8 per pupil |
- COOPER & JORDAN CE PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION (charity 1139461) Latest return: £5k £11 per pupil in the year to August 2025. It reports 20 volunteers. Annual return due 30 June 2025.
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
- 14% of pupils eligible for free school meals (median school: council 38%, England 22%)
- Neighbourhood deprivation decile 8 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- Income deprivation affecting children: decile 7 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- 30% of adults nearby hold a degree-level qualification
- 74% of nearby homes are owner-occupied
- 7% 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 £1.3m £2,760 per pupil
- Support staff £771k £1,657 per pupil
- Buildings and grounds £241k £518 per pupil
- Energy £72k £154 per pupil
- Learning resources £92k £198 per pupil
- Everything else £539k £1,159 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 Cooper and Jordan Church of England Primary School's £271k £582 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 Cooper and Jordan 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)
- 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.
- St Andrew's Church of England Primary Academy
- Red Oaks Primary School
- Newlands Spring Primary and Nursery School
- Forest and Sandridge Church of England Primary School
- St Philip Neri With St Bede Catholic Voluntary Academy
Admissions and catchments for Cooper and Jordan Church of England Primary School on Schools in Reach · All Walsall school finances · Schools in Aldridge-Brownhills
- 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)