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Bardwell Church of England Primary School: school finances

Latest full year 2024-25, as an academy (accounts return, September to August). Suffolk · Primary · Academy converter

Large reserves

Holds £162k £2,749 per pupil in reserve, 30% of a year's income.

Status by year

  1. 2018-19 Large reserves reserve 8% or more of a year's income
  2. 2019-20 Large reserves same as the year before
  3. 2020-21 Large reserves same as the year before
  4. 2021-22 Large reserves same as the year before
  5. 2022-23 Large reserves same as the year before
  6. 2023-24 Large reserves same as the year before
  7. 2024-25 Large reserves same as the year before
Present and share

School presentation · PTFA presentation

School Wrapped: Bardwell Church of England Primary School's year in money · PTFA Wrapped

Government funding vs spending per pupil

In 2024-25, government funding was £525k £8,898 per pupil and spending £477k £8,085 per pupil. Government funding was £48k £814 per pupil more than spending.

Government funding and spending per pupil, 2018-19 to 2024-25Government funding and spending per pupil each year, 2018-19 to 2024-25. 2018-19: funding £6k, spending £6k; 2019-20: funding £7k, spending £6k; 2020-21: funding £7k, spending £8k; 2021-22: funding £7k, spending £7k; 2022-23: funding £7k, spending £7k; 2023-24: funding £8k, spending £8k; 2024-25: funding £9k, spending £8k£6,000£7,000£8,000£9,0002018-192020-212022-232024-25Gov. fundingSpendingSimilarGov. fundingSpending

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

Reserve per pupil, 2018-19 to 2024-25Reserve per pupil at the end of each year. 2018-19: £2k; 2019-20: £2k; 2020-21: £2k; 2021-22: £1k; 2022-23: £1k; 2023-24: £2k; 2024-25: £3k£0£1,000£2,0002018-192020-212022-232024-25ReserveSimilarReserve

Real terms: in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026).

Each year's figures, newest first
YearPupilsIncomeSpendingIn-year balanceReserve at year end
2024-2559.0£540k £9,153 per pupil£477k £8,085 per pupil+£63k +£1,068 per pupil£151k £2,559 per pupil
2023-2459.0£522k £8,847 per pupil£463k £7,847 per pupil+£59k +£1,000 per pupil£118k £2,000 per pupil
2022-2363.0£464k £7,365 per pupil£425k £6,746 per pupil+£39k +£619 per pupil£91k £1,444 per pupil
2021-2255.0£387k £7,036 per pupil£393k £7,145 per pupil-£6k -£109 per pupil£78k £1,418 per pupil
2020-2151.0£391k £7,667 per pupil£384k £7,529 per pupil+£7k +£137 per pupil£104k £2,039 per pupil
2019-2056.0£383k £6,839 per pupil£344k £6,143 per pupil+£39k +£696 per pupil£114k £2,036 per pupil
2018-1959.0£374k £6,339 per pupil£359k £6,085 per pupil+£15k +£254 per pupil£92k £1,559 per pupil

Where the money comes from

Income in 2024-25, with the trend per pupil since 2018-19
Line2024-25Trend per pupilChange per pupil since 2018-19Similar schools (median per pupil)
Total income£540k £9,153 per pupil+44% +14% real£10k
Government funding£525k £8,898 per pupil+40% +10% real£9k
Special needs (SEN) funding£5k £85 per pupil-17% -35% real£148
Pupil premiumNot reported in academy accounts
Money the school raised itself£13k £220 per pupil£409
Donations (day-to-day)£1k £17 per pupil-67% -74% real£50
Donations for buildings and equipmentNot reported in academy accounts
Facilities and services£3k £51 per pupil£109
Catering income£5k £85 per pupil-29% -44% real£72
Other DfE grants£0 £0 per pupil£451

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

Spending in 2024-25, with the trend per pupil since 2018-19
Line2024-25Trend per pupilChange per pupil since 2018-19Similar schools (median per pupil)
Total spending£477k £8,085 per pupil+33% +4% real£10k
Teachers£272k £4,610 per pupil+49% +17% real£5k
Supply staff£2k £34 per pupil-80% -84% real£170
Support staff£62k £1,051 per pupil+72% +35% real£2k
Office and admin staff£33k £559 per pupil+57% +24% real£484
Premises staff£0 £0 per pupil£102
Catering staff£0 £0 per pupil£0
Other staff costs£0 £0 per pupil-100% -100% real£293
All staff costs£372k £6,305 per pupil+39% +10% real£7k
Premises£25k £424 per pupil+0% -21% real£407
Energy£8k £136 per pupil+33% +5% real£154
Rates, water and other building costs£43k £729 per pupil+44% +13% real£742
Catering£24k £407 per pupil+26% -1% real£336
Learning resources£8k £136 per pupil-20% -37% real£561
Supplies and services£37k £627 per pupil+0% -21% real£1k
Bought-in services£14k £237 per pupil+55% +22% real£338

Staff costs were 78% 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 £486k £8,241 per pupil in 2024-25. Across England, primary schools are expected to spend about £7,000 per pupil in 2025–26. (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

  1. 2018-19 59.0
  2. 2019-20 56.0
  3. 2020-21 51.0
  4. 2021-22 55.0
  5. 2022-23 63.0
  6. 2023-24 59.0
  7. 2024-25 59.0

Trust central spending

What THE TILIAN PARTNERSHIP spent centrally per pupil, on top of this school's own accounts:

  1. 2018-19 £318
  2. 2019-20 £303
  3. 2020-21 £350
  4. 2021-22 £481
  5. 2022-23 £409
  6. 2023-24 £522
  7. 2024-25 £432

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

No registered parents' association found for Bardwell Church of England 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

academy · Primary · Mixed · THE TILIAN PARTNERSHIP (multi-academy trust) · Church of England

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.

National context

Questions to ask the school

Useful for parents, governors and PTFA committees.

  1. What is Bardwell Church of England Primary School's £162k £2,749 per pupil reserve being kept for, and is there a timetable to spend it?
  2. How much of Bardwell Church of England Primary School's funding does THE TILIAN PARTNERSHIP 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)
  3. How much does the PTA (or friends' association) raise each year, and what does it pay for?
  4. Is any of it already committed, for example to building work or to cover a planned overspend?
  5. Does the school's reserve figure include its share of the trust's central reserves?
  6. How does Bardwell 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)
  7. Could some be spent on current pupils without putting future years at risk?
  8. 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.

Compare side by side

Admissions and catchments for Bardwell Church of England Primary School on Schools in Reach · All Suffolk school finances · Schools in Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket · THE TILIAN PARTNERSHIP