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St Luke's Church of England Primary School: school finances

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

Large reserves

Holds £158k £879 per pupil in reserve, 8% 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 Healthy reserve between 3% and 8% of a year's income
  4. 2021-22 Healthy same as the year before
  5. 2022-23 Large reserves reserve 8% or more of a year's income
  6. 2023-24 Tight reserve under 3% of a year's income
  7. 2024-25 Large reserves reserve 8% or more of a year's income
Present and share

School presentation · PTFA presentation

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

Government funding vs spending per pupil

In 2024-25, government funding was £1.8m £10,078 per pupil and spending £1.8m £10,194 per pupil. Spending was £21k £117 per pupil more than government funding; the difference came from other income, such as lettings, catering or donations, or from the school's reserve.

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 £7k, spending £7k; 2019-20: funding £8k, spending £7k; 2020-21: funding £8k, spending £9k; 2021-22: funding £8k, spending £9k; 2022-23: funding £10k, spending £9k; 2023-24: funding £9k, spending £9k; 2024-25: funding £10k, spending £10k£7,000£8,000£9,000£10,0002018-192020-212022-232024-25Gov. 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: £1k; 2020-21: £451; 2021-22: £380; 2022-23: £836; 2023-24: £0; 2024-25: £872£0£500£1,000£1,5002018-192020-212022-232024-25ReserveSimilarReserve

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

Each year's figures, newest first
YearPupilsIncomeSpendingIn-year balanceReserve at year end
2024-25180.0£1.9m £10,467 per pupil£1.8m £10,194 per pupil+£49k +£272 per pupil£157k £872 per pupil
2023-24179.0£1.7m £9,559 per pupil£1.6m £9,151 per pupil+£73k +£408 per pupil£0 £0 per pupil
2022-23159.0£1.6m £9,918 per pupil£1.4m £9,094 per pupil+£131k +£824 per pupil£133k £836 per pupil
2021-22179.0£1.6m £8,877 per pupil£1.5m £8,615 per pupil+£47k +£263 per pupil£68k £380 per pupil
2020-21184.0£1.5m £8,250 per pupil£1.6m £8,804 per pupil-£102k -£554 per pupil£83k £451 per pupil
2019-20184.0£1.4m £7,804 per pupil£1.3m £7,076 per pupil+£134k +£728 per pupil£272k £1,478 per pupil
2018-19190.0£1.6m £8,205 per pupil£1.4m £7,237 per pupil+£184k +£968 per pupil£289k £1,521 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£1.9m £10,467 per pupil+28% +0% real£10k
Government funding£1.8m £10,078 per pupil+39% +9% real£10k
Special needs (SEN) funding£180k £1,000 per pupil+400% +293% real£688
Pupil premiumNot reported in academy accounts
Money the school raised itself£70k £389 per pupil-58% -67% real£381
Donations (day-to-day)£33k £183 per pupil+106% +61% real£20
Donations for buildings and equipmentNot reported in academy accounts
Facilities and services£14k £78 per pupil+200% +132% real£240
Catering income£1k £6 per pupil-92% -94% real£6
Other DfE grants£156k £867 per pupil£241

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£1.8m £10,194 per pupil+41% +11% real£10k
Teachers£640k £3,556 per pupil-29% -44% real£5k
Supply staff£422k £2,344 per pupil+503% +373% real£320
Support staff£79k £439 per pupil£2k
Office and admin staff£129k £717 per pupil+9% -14% real£600
Premises staff£53k £294 per pupil+1738% +1400% real£212
Catering staff£0 £0 per pupil£0
Other staff costs£12k £67 per pupil+109% +66% real£207
All staff costs£1.3m £7,150 per pupil+17% -8% real£7k
Premises£103k £572 per pupil+78% +40% real£687
Energy£34k £189 per pupil+155% +101% real£188
Rates, water and other building costs£158k £878 per pupil+101% +58% real£1k
Catering£103k £572 per pupil+65% +30% real£540
Learning resources£72k £400 per pupil+58% +24% real£412
Supplies and services£263k £1,461 per pupil+308% +221% real£1k
Bought-in services£49k £272 per pupil+159% +104% real£538

Staff costs were 70% 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 £1.9m £10,391 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. 2018-19 190.0
  2. 2019-20 184.0
  3. 2020-21 184.0
  4. 2021-22 179.0
  5. 2022-23 159.0
  6. 2023-24 179.0
  7. 2024-25 180.0

Pupil numbers fell from 190.0 to 180.0 (5% fewer) over the years shown.

Schools are mostly funded per pupil, so fewer pupils means less money. Costs do not fall in step: a class with a few fewer pupils still needs a teacher. Primary schools in England have already lost about 100,000 pupils (3%) between 2019–20 and 2024–25, and are expected to lose over 300,000 more (about 8%) by 2030–31. Secondary numbers are expected to start falling from about 2026–27. The IFS points out that money is only saved if schools actually reduce what they spend, such as staff or the number of schools. That is why a well-run school with falling numbers can still find its budget under pressure. (IFS, pp. 19, 64)

Income that passed straight through

In 2024-25, this school's income rose by +£173k +£961 per pupil on the year before, and its staff costs by +£145k +£806 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 SDBE MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST spent centrally per pupil, on top of this school's own accounts:

  1. 2018-19 £193
  2. 2019-20 £261
  3. 2020-21 £315
  4. 2021-22 £296
  5. 2022-23 £679
  6. 2023-24 £399
  7. 2024-25 -£4

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

Parents' association money per pupilParents' association income and spending per pupil. 2020-21: raised £0; 2021-22: raised £0; 2022-23: raised £145; 2023-24: raised £74; 2024-25: raised £25£0£50£1002020-212021-222022-232023-242024-25RaisedSpent
Each school year's returns, newest first
School yearRaisedSpent
2024-25
year to August 2025		£5k £25 per pupil£4k £22 per pupil
2023-24
year to August 2024		£13k £74 per pupil£23k £129 per pupil
2022-23
year to August 2023		£23k £145 per pupil£13k £80 per pupil
2021-22
year to August 2022		£0 £0 per pupil£116 £1 per pupil
2020-21
year to August 2021		£0 £0 per pupil£116 £1 per pupil

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

academy · Primary · Mixed · SDBE MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST (multi-academy trust) · Church of England

Intake band 5 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 St Luke's Church of England Primary School's £158k £879 per pupil reserve being kept for, and is there a timetable to spend it?
  2. How many pupils does St Luke's Church of England Primary School expect in each year group over the next three years? Why ask: Primary pupil numbers in England are expected to fall by over 300,000 (about 8%) by 2030–31. (IFS, p. 19)
  3. How many pupils at St Luke's Church of England Primary School have an EHCP or need extra support, and how is support above the first £6,000 a year funded? Why ask: Mainstream schools are expected to fund the first £6,000 a year per pupil from their core budget. (IFS, p. 46)
  4. How much of St Luke's Church of England Primary School's funding does SDBE 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)
  5. How much does the PTA (or friends' association) raise each year, and what does it pay for?
  6. Is any of it already committed, for example to building work or to cover a planned overspend?
  7. Is the school planning to merge classes, share staff or work more closely with another school?
  8. Does the council's top-up money arrive on time and cover what the support actually costs?

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 St Luke's Church of England Primary School on Schools in Reach · All Lambeth school finances · Schools in Dulwich and West Norwood · SDBE MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST