DERBY DIOCESAN ACADEMY TRUST: academy finances
33 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 10 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 0 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 0 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 16 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 17 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 17 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 0 of 33 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £346 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £366 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Healthy | +£81k +£380 per pupil | £1.6m £7,501 per pupil | £1.6m £7,473 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£104k +£361 per pupil | £1.7m £6,014 per pupil | £1.9m £6,554 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £14 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£110k +£460 per pupil | £1.6m £6,814 per pupil | £1.7m £6,939 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £4 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£62k +£453 per pupil | £828k £6,088 per pupil | £892k £6,559 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £29 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£156k +£518 per pupil | £1.8m £6,140 per pupil | £1.9m £6,339 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2020 | — | £1k £3 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£190k +£634 per pupil | £2.2m £7,515 per pupil | £2.1m £7,087 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £7k £23 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£141k +£591 per pupil | £1.4m £5,878 per pupil | £1.5m £6,365 per pupil | £31k £128 per pupil | £128 | £20k £84 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£393k +£677 per pupil | £4.4m £7,599 per pupil | £4.3m £7,408 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £2 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£64k +£990 per pupil | £593k £9,123 per pupil | £608k £9,354 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £62 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£67k +£843 per pupil | £613k £7,759 per pupil | £583k £7,380 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £3k £38 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£465k +£812 per pupil | £4.5m £7,775 per pupil | £4.5m £7,838 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£242k +£3,004 per pupil | £2.1m £26,509 per pupil | £1.9m £23,801 per pupil | £2k £23 per pupil | £23 | £2k £25 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