BOURNE EDUCATION TRUST: academy finances
27 academies with a full-year return, 0 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 14 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 0 of 16 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 0 of 16 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 19 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 19 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 21 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 0 of 23 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £305 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £322 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tight | +£187k +£208 per pupil | £7.5m £8,278 per pupil | £7.2m £7,950 per pupil | £7k £8 per pupil | £8 | £18k £20 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£525k +£716 per pupil | £5.6m £7,576 per pupil | £4.9m £6,720 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2009 | — | £5k £7 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£202k +£682 per pupil | £1.9m £6,414 per pupil | £1.9m £6,340 per pupil | £28k £94 per pupil | £94 | £21k £71 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£346k +£743 per pupil | £3.0m £6,546 per pupil | £3.3m £6,999 per pupil | £16k £35 per pupil | £35 | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£147k +£813 per pupil | £1.1m £5,906 per pupil | £1.1m £6,331 per pupil | £9k | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£737k +£1,105 per pupil | £5.4m £8,105 per pupil | £4.9m £7,403 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £1 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.1m +£1,109 per pupil | £7.5m £7,837 per pupil | £6.4m £6,658 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2016 | — | £42k £44 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£582k +£1,156 per pupil | £3.8m £7,486 per pupil | £3.6m £7,218 per pupil | £10k £20 per pupil | £20 | -£1k -£2 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.3m +£1,259 per pupil | £8.1m £7,622 per pupil | £7.7m £7,230 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2013 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.1m +£1,357 per pupil | £6.7m £8,422 per pupil | £6.2m £7,812 per pupil | £16k £20 per pupil | £20 | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.2m +£4,731 per pupil | £6.9m £26,221 per pupil | £5.7m £21,768 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2011 | — | £13k £49 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.4m +£1,651 per pupil | £7.8m £9,020 per pupil | £6.8m £7,864 per pupil | £9k | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£397k +£1,158 per pupil | £1.9m £5,650 per pupil | £1.9m £5,472 per pupil | £21k £62 per pupil | £62 | £34k £99 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