Long Melford Church of England Primary School: school finances
Latest full year 2024-25, as an academy (accounts return, September to August). Suffolk · Primary · Academy sponsor led
Large reserves
Holds £220k £1,038 per pupil in reserve, 15% of a year's income.
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
Government funding vs spending per pupil
In 2024-25, government funding was £1.3m £6,292 per pupil and spending £1.3m £6,104 per pupil. Government funding was £40k £189 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 | 212.0 | £1.4m £6,708 per pupil | £1.3m £6,104 per pupil | +£128k +£604 per pupil | £176k £830 per pupil |
| 2023-24 | 218.0 | £1.3m £5,780 per pupil | £1.2m £5,670 per pupil | +£24k +£110 per pupil | £121k £555 per pupil |
| 2022-23 | 217.0 | £1.2m £5,645 per pupil | £1.2m £5,479 per pupil | +£36k +£166 per pupil | £160k £737 per pupil |
| 2021-22 | 222.5 | £1.2m £5,178 per pupil | £1.1m £4,769 per pupil | +£91k +£409 per pupil | £182k £818 per pupil |
| 2020-21 | 222.5 | £1.1m £4,827 per pupil | £1.0m £4,589 per pupil | +£53k +£238 per pupil | £135k £607 per pupil |
| 2019-20 | 201.0 | £919k £4,572 per pupil | £840k £4,179 per pupil | +£79k +£393 per pupil | £88k £438 per pupil |
| 2018-19 | 191.5 | £872k £4,554 per pupil | £826k £4,313 per pupil | +£46k +£240 per pupil | £122k £637 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 | £1.4m £6,708 per pupil | +47% +16% real | £7k | |
| Government funding | £1.3m £6,292 per pupil | +46% +15% real | £6k | |
| Special needs (SEN) funding | £44k £208 per pupil | +38% +8% real | £264 | |
| Pupil premium | Not reported in academy accounts | |||
| Money the school raised itself | £74k £349 per pupil | +157% +102% real | £399 | |
| Donations (day-to-day) | £9k £42 per pupil | +0% -20% real | £28 | |
| Donations for buildings and equipment | Not reported in academy accounts | |||
| Facilities and services | £44k £208 per pupil | +1200% +960% real | £127 | |
| Catering income | £21k £99 per pupil | +27% -1% real | £69 | |
| Other DfE grants | £81k £382 per pupil | -17% -35% real | £233 | |
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 | £1.3m £6,104 per pupil | +42% +11% real | £7k | |
| Teachers | £525k £2,476 per pupil | +31% +3% real | £3k | |
| Supply staff | £0 £0 per pupil | -100% -100% real | £95 | |
| Support staff | £393k £1,854 per pupil | +66% +30% real | £1k | |
| Office and admin staff | £72k £340 per pupil | +45% +13% real | £306 | |
| Premises staff | £39k £184 per pupil | -2% -23% real | £181 | |
| Catering staff | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | ||
| Other staff costs | £42k £198 per pupil | +58% +25% real | £201 | |
| All staff costs | £1.0m £4,868 per pupil | +42% +12% real | £5k | |
| Premises | £60k £283 per pupil | -70% -76% real | £363 | |
| Energy | £18k £85 per pupil | +49% +18% real | £106 | |
| Rates, water and other building costs | £104k £491 per pupil | +54% +21% real | £550 | |
| Catering | £76k £358 per pupil | +75% +38% real | £299 | |
| Learning resources | £68k £321 per pupil | +4% -18% real | £273 | |
| Supplies and services | £98k £462 per pupil | +48% +16% real | £667 | |
| Bought-in services | £9k £42 per pupil | +740% +514% real | £181 |
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 £1.3m £6,221 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
- 2018-19 191.5
- 2019-20 201.0
- 2020-21 222.5
- 2021-22 222.5
- 2022-23 217.0
- 2023-24 218.0
- 2024-25 212.0
Trust central spending
What ST EDMUNDSBURY AND IPSWICH DIOCESAN MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST spent centrally per pupil, on top of this school's own accounts:
- 2018-19 £180
- 2019-20 £262
- 2020-21 £265
- 2021-22 £296
- 2022-23 £286
- 2023-24 £377
- 2024-25 £399
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2008-09 year to August 2009 | £3k | £3k |
| 2007-08 year to August 2008 | £2k | £1k |
- LONG MELFORD SCHOOL PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION (charity 1051010) Had a registered PTA until 2011. It reports 30 volunteers. Annual return due 30 June 2010.
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
- 20% 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 6 of 10 (1 = most deprived)
- 29% of adults nearby hold a degree-level qualification
- 75% of nearby homes are owner-occupied
- 4% of nearby homes are social rented
Intake band 3 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 £525k £2,476 per pupil
- Support staff £393k £1,854 per pupil
- Buildings and grounds £60k £283 per pupil
- Energy £18k £85 per pupil
- Learning resources £68k £321 per pupil
- Everything else £230k £1,085 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)
- 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 Long Melford Church of England Primary School's £220k £1,038 per pupil reserve being kept for, and is there a timetable to spend it?
- How much of Long Melford Church of England Primary School's funding does ST EDMUNDSBURY AND IPSWICH DIOCESAN MULTI-ACADEMY 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 Long Melford 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?
- 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.
- St Raphael's Catholic Primary School
- St Anne's CofE Primary School
- Medmerry Primary School
- Cradley CofE Primary School
- Livingstone Primary School
Admissions and catchments for Long Melford Church of England Primary School on Schools in Reach · All Suffolk school finances · Schools in South Suffolk · ST EDMUNDSBURY AND IPSWICH DIOCESAN MULTI-ACADEMY 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)