The Bishop Wand Church of England School: school finances
Latest full year 2024-25, as an academy (accounts return, September to August). Surrey · Secondary · Academy converter
Large reserves
Holds £779k £649 per pupil in reserve, 9% of a year's income.
Status by year
- 2018-19 Large reserves reserve 5% 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
Government funding vs spending per pupil
In 2024-25, government funding was £8.3m £6,947 per pupil and spending £8.3m £6,907 per pupil. Government funding was £48k £40 per pupil more than spending.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 1,200.0 | £8.5m £7,058 per pupil | £8.3m £6,907 per pupil | +£181k +£151 per pupil | £0 £0 per pupil |
| 2023-24 | 1,181.0 | £7.8m £6,627 per pupil | £7.9m £6,648 per pupil | -£25k -£21 per pupil | £649k £550 per pupil |
| 2022-23 | 1,142.0 | £6.7m £5,901 per pupil | £7.1m £6,186 per pupil | -£325k -£285 per pupil | £679k £595 per pupil |
| 2021-22 | 1,102.0 | £6.6m £6,005 per pupil | £6.7m £6,046 per pupil | -£46k -£42 per pupil | £1.0m £909 per pupil |
| 2020-21 | 1,087.0 | £6.4m £5,845 per pupil | £6.1m £5,614 per pupil | +£251k +£231 per pupil | £1.0m £962 per pupil |
| 2019-20 | 1,037.0 | £5.6m £5,424 per pupil | £5.3m £5,105 per pupil | +£331k +£319 per pupil | £795k £767 per pupil |
| 2018-19 | 1,006.0 | £5.6m £5,590 per pupil | £5.6m £5,582 per pupil | +£9k +£9 per pupil | £466k £463 per pupil |
Where the money comes from
| Line | 2024-25 | Trend per pupil | Change per pupil since 2018-19 | Similar schools (median per pupil) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total income | £8.5m £7,058 per pupil | +26% -1% real | £7k | |
| Government funding | £8.3m £6,947 per pupil | +31% +3% real | £7k | |
| Special needs (SEN) funding | £173k £144 per pupil | +62% +27% real | £114 | |
| Pupil premium | Not reported in academy accounts | |||
| Money the school raised itself | £61k £51 per pupil | -72% -78% real | £466 | |
| Donations (day-to-day) | £0 £0 per pupil recorded | -100% -100% real | £12 | |
| Donations for buildings and equipment | Not reported in academy accounts | |||
| Facilities and services | £8k £7 per pupil | -91% -93% real | £40 | |
| Catering income | £0 £0 per pupil | £7 | ||
| Other DfE grants | £180k £150 per pupil | +1400% +1077% real | £5 | |
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)
Academy accounts don't report pupil premium as a separate line, so it is shown as not reported rather than as zero.
Where it goes
| Line | 2024-25 | Trend per pupil | Change per pupil since 2018-19 | Similar schools (median per pupil) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total spending | £8.3m £6,907 per pupil | +24% -3% real | £7k | |
| Teachers | £5.0m £4,166 per pupil | +22% -4% real | £4k | |
| Supply staff | £207k £172 per pupil | +33% +4% real | £59 | |
| Support staff | £778k £648 per pupil | +57% +24% real | £522 | |
| Office and admin staff | £598k £498 per pupil | +17% -8% real | £435 | |
| Premises staff | £82k £68 per pupil | -41% -54% real | £132 | |
| Catering staff | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Other staff costs | £56k £47 per pupil | -41% -53% real | £67 | |
| All staff costs | £6.6m £5,532 per pupil | +24% -2% real | £6k | |
| Premises | £517k £431 per pupil | +14% -10% real | £387 | |
| Energy | £190k £158 per pupil | +22% -4% real | £126 | |
| Rates, water and other building costs | £285k £238 per pupil | +22% -4% real | £410 | |
| Catering | £0 £0 per pupil | £70 | ||
| Learning resources | £372k £310 per pupil | +24% -3% real | £554 | |
| Supplies and services | £848k £707 per pupil | +31% +3% real | £784 | |
| Bought-in services | £282k £235 per pupil | +42% +12% real | £89 |
Staff costs were 80% of this school's spending in 2024-25. Across England, over 80% of schools' costs are staff costs. (IFS, p. 63)
In 2025-26 prices, this school spent £8.4m £7,040 per pupil in 2024-25. Across England, secondary schools are expected to spend about £7,800 per pupil in 2025–26, including sixth forms. (IFS, p. 7)
Academy figures exclude the trust's central spending on its schools, so they can look lower than a council-run school's. See the trust's central spending below.
Pupils by year
- 2018-19 1,006.0
- 2019-20 1,037.0
- 2020-21 1,087.0
- 2021-22 1,102.0
- 2022-23 1,142.0
- 2023-24 1,181.0
- 2024-25 1,200.0
Income that passed straight through
In 2024-25, this school's income rose by +£643k +£536 per pupil on the year before, and its staff costs by +£643k +£536 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)
Trust central spending
What INSTANTER LEARNING TRUST spent centrally per pupil, on top of this school's own accounts:
- 2018-19 £0
- 2019-20 £0
- 2020-21 £0
- 2021-22 £0
- 2022-23 £0
- 2023-24 £0
- 2024-25 £0
These are cash figures. The IFS average below is in 2025-26 prices.
On average, academy trusts spent £510 per pupil centrally in 2023–24, money that is not counted in their individual schools' own spending. (IFS, p. 56)
Money raised by parents
| School year | Raised | Spent |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 year to July 2026 | £5k | £3k |
| 2024-25 year to July 2025 | £8k £7 per pupil | £2k £2 per pupil |
| 2023-24 year to July 2024 | £13k £11 per pupil | £21k £17 per pupil |
| 2022-23 year to July 2023 | £14k £12 per pupil | £12k £10 per pupil |
| 2021-22 year to July 2022 | £28k £25 per pupil | £12k £11 per pupil |
| 2020-21 year to July 2021 | £406 £0 per pupil | £20 £0 per pupil |
- THE GOVERNORS AND FRIENDS OF BISHOP WAND CHURCH OF ENGLAND SCHOOL (charity 1081558) Latest return: £5k in the year to July 2026. Annual return due 31 May 2025.
- THE BISHOP WAND SCHOOL PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION (charity 296037) Latest return: £346 £0 per pupil in the year to July 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
- 10% of pupils eligible for free school meals (median school: council 14%, England 22%)
- Neighbourhood deprivation decile 6 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- Income deprivation affecting children: decile 5 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- 28% of adults nearby hold a degree-level qualification
- 74% 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 2024-25, here is roughly where it went, with the amount for each pupil.
- Teachers £5.2m £4,338 per pupil
- Support staff £778k £648 per pupil
- Buildings and grounds £517k £431 per pupil
- Energy £190k £158 per pupil
- Learning resources £372k £310 per pupil
- Everything else £1.2m £1,021 per pupil
National context
- Secondary pupil numbers in England are expected to fall by about 100,000 (4%) by 2030–31, starting from about 2026–27. (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)
- 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)
- School sixth forms get about £6,400 per student in 2025–26, compared with about £8,000 in further education colleges. (IFS, p. 69)
- Funding per student in school sixth forms is around 20% lower in real terms than in 2010–11. (IFS, p. 11)
Questions to ask the school
Useful for parents, governors and PTFA committees.
- What is The Bishop Wand Church of England School's £779k £649 per pupil reserve being kept for, and is there a timetable to spend it?
- How much of The Bishop Wand Church of England School's funding does INSTANTER LEARNING TRUST keep centrally each year, and what does the school get for it? Why ask: Academy trusts spent £510 per pupil centrally in 2023–24 on average. (IFS, p. 56)
- 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?
- Does the school's reserve figure include its share of the trust's central reserves?
- How does The Bishop Wand Church of England 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?
- Can the trust move money between its schools, and has this school given or received any?
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.
- Wirral Grammar School for Girls
- Keswick School
- Lawrence Sheriff School
- Wilmington Grammar School for Boys
- Richard Hale School
Admissions and catchments for The Bishop Wand Church of England School on Schools in Reach · All Surrey school finances · Schools in Spelthorne · INSTANTER LEARNING TRUST
- 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)