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

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

Large reserves

Holds £211k £941 per pupil in reserve, 16% 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 Tight reserve under 3% of a year's income
  3. 2020-21 Heading for deficit spending more than it received, reserve running down
  4. 2021-22 Tight reserve under 3% of a year's income
  5. 2022-23 Tight same as the year before
  6. 2023-24 Tight same as the year before
  7. 2024-25 Large reserves reserve 8% or more of a year's income
Present and share

School presentation · PTFA presentation

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

Government funding vs spending per pupil

In 2024-25, government funding was £1.2m £5,411 per pupil and spending £1.2m £5,482 per pupil. Spending was £16k £71 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 £4k, spending £5k; 2019-20: funding £4k, spending £5k; 2020-21: funding £5k, spending £6k; 2021-22: funding £5k, spending £5k; 2022-23: funding £5k, spending £5k; 2023-24: funding £5k, spending £5k; 2024-25: funding £5k, spending £5k£4,000£5,000£6,0002018-192020-212022-232024-25Gov. 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: £565; 2019-20: £0; 2020-21: £104; 2021-22: £0; 2022-23: £0; 2023-24: £0; 2024-25: £0£0£200£400£6002018-192020-212022-232024-25ReserveSimilarReserve

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

Each year's figures, newest first
YearPupilsIncomeSpendingIn-year balanceReserve at year end
2024-25224.0£1.3m £5,911 per pupil£1.2m £5,482 per pupil+£96k +£429 per pupil£0 £0 per pupil
2023-24225.0£1.4m £6,058 per pupil£1.1m £4,693 per pupil+£307k +£1,364 per pupil£0 £0 per pupil
2022-23230.0£1.4m £6,022 per pupil£1.2m £5,335 per pupil+£158k +£687 per pupil£0 £0 per pupil
2021-22229.5£1.3m £5,503 per pupil£1.2m £5,037 per pupil+£107k +£466 per pupil£0 £0 per pupil
2020-21221.5£1.2m £5,377 per pupil£1.2m £5,576 per pupil-£44k -£199 per pupil£23k £104 per pupil
2019-20240.0£1.1m £4,617 per pupil£1.2m £4,888 per pupil-£65k -£271 per pupil£0 £0 per pupil
2018-19226.5£1.1m £4,786 per pupil£1.0m £4,587 per pupil+£45k +£199 per pupil£128k £565 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£1.3m £5,911 per pupil+24% -3% real£7k
Government funding£1.2m £5,411 per pupil+31% +3% real£6k
Special needs (SEN) funding£0 £0 per pupil£236
Pupil premiumNot reported in academy accounts
Money the school raised itself£88k £393 per pupil+33% +4% real£474
Donations (day-to-day)£4k £18 per pupil-18% -38% real£24
Donations for buildings and equipmentNot reported in academy accounts
Facilities and services£62k £277 per pupil+1% -21% real£206
Catering income£19k £85 per pupil£100
Other DfE grants£57k £254 per pupil+1% -21% real£257

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£1.2m £5,482 per pupil+20% -6% real£7k
Teachers£628k £2,804 per pupil+18% -7% real£3k
Supply staff£10k £45 per pupil-43% -55% real£54
Support staff£279k £1,246 per pupil+88% +48% real£1k
Office and admin staff£60k £268 per pupil+45% +14% real£308
Premises staff£0 £0 per pupil-100% -100% real£170
Catering staff£0 £0 per pupil£0
Other staff costs£90k £402 per pupil+38% +8% real£238
All staff costs£1.1m £4,763 per pupil+32% +4% real£5k
Premises£0 £0 per pupil-100% -100% real£338
Energy£0 £0 per pupil-100% -100% real£95
Rates, water and other building costs£57k £254 per pupil+131% +81% real£539
Catering£57k £254 per pupil+1311% +1026% real£315
Learning resources£55k £246 per pupil+39% +9% real£292
Supplies and services£104k £464 per pupil+11% -13% real£556
Bought-in services£12k £54 per pupil+1250% +817% real£173

Staff costs were 87% 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 £5,588 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. 2018-19 226.5
  2. 2019-20 240.0
  3. 2020-21 221.5
  4. 2021-22 229.5
  5. 2022-23 230.0
  6. 2023-24 225.0
  7. 2024-25 224.0

Trust central spending

What BIRMINGHAM DIOCESAN MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST spent centrally per pupil, on top of this school's own accounts:

  1. 2018-19 £498
  2. 2019-20 £617
  3. 2020-21 £309
  4. 2021-22 £972
  5. 2022-23 £671
  6. 2023-24 £2k
  7. 2024-25 £1k

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 St Margaret's 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 · BIRMINGHAM DIOCESAN MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST (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 St Margaret's Church of England Primary School's £211k £941 per pupil reserve being kept for, and is there a timetable to spend it?
  2. How much of St Margaret's Church of England Primary School's funding does BIRMINGHAM 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)
  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 St Margaret's 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 St Margaret's Church of England Primary School on Schools in Reach · All Solihull school finances · Schools in Solihull West and Shirley · BIRMINGHAM DIOCESAN MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST