ALETHEIA ACADEMIES TRUST: academy finances
15 academies with a full-year return, 1 of them in deficit at their latest return. A trust can move money between its academies, so an academy shown in deficit may be supported by the trust as a whole.
Most of a school's money pays for staff, so deficits usually build up when pay and other costs rise faster than funding, or when pupil numbers fall and the money that comes with each pupil goes too. What helps: a recovery plan agreed with the council or trust that brings the budget back into balance over a few years, regular forecasts that governors check, and early conversations about pupil numbers and special needs funding.
- 2018-19: 0 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 0 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 0 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 10 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 1 of 11 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 2 of 11 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 1 of 15 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £437 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £462 in 2025–26 prices. The IFS average for all trusts in 2023-24 was £510 per pupil, in 2025–26 prices (IFS, p.56).
Figures are each school's latest full-year return, total with the per-pupil figure beside it. PTA income is the school's share of its registered parents' association's latest return, in the school year that return falls in. Where no registered parents' association was found, the school may still have one: charities with an income of £5,000 or less need not register.
| School | Status | Reserve | Government funding | Spending | PTA income | PTA per pupil | Donations | Reserve per pupil trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
In deficit | -£18k -£82 per pupil | £1.2m £5,733 per pupil | £1.2m £5,691 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£98k +£493 per pupil | £1.3m £6,727 per pupil | £1.2m £6,061 per pupil | £11k £54 per pupil | £54 | £12k £61 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£102k +£494 per pupil | £1.1m £5,481 per pupil | £1.1m £5,573 per pupil | £10k £46 per pupil | £46 | £7k £34 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£256k +£558 per pupil | £2.8m £6,037 per pupil | £2.4m £5,145 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £4 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.0m +£635 per pupil | £10.4m £6,570 per pupil | £10.1m £6,389 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £1 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.2m +£863 per pupil | £10.0m £7,047 per pupil | £10.2m £7,198 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2010 | — | £195k £138 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£970k +£649 per pupil | £8.4m £5,645 per pupil | £8.9m £5,981 per pupil | £5k | — | £62k £41 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£353k +£839 per pupil | £2.5m £5,950 per pupil | £2.4m £5,762 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£351k +£879 per pupil | £2.3m £5,644 per pupil | £2.3m £5,654 per pupil | £19k £46 per pupil | £46 | £8k £20 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£350k +£882 per pupil | £2.3m £5,733 per pupil | £2.3m £5,814 per pupil | £18k £45 per pupil | £45 | £7k £18 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£574k +£993 per pupil | £3.5m £6,083 per pupil | £3.4m £5,823 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2012 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£189k +£1,279 per pupil | £1.1m £7,716 per pupil | £1.0m £6,959 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £7 per pupil |
Sources: DfE Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool data (CFR returns for council-run schools, April to March; academy accounts returns, September to August), Get Information about Schools, DfE section 251 outturn (DSG balances), the Charity Commission register and the IFS annual report on education spending in England 2025–26 (IFS figures in 2025–26 prices, November 2025 deflator). Open Government Licence v3.0. Check at source: DfE benchmarking for this trust. How these figures are worked out