EMBARK MULTI ACADEMY TRUST: academy finances
21 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.
- 2019-20: 0 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 1 of 9 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 10 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 1 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 19 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 1 of 21 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £186 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £197 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 | -£176k -£171 per pupil | £7.9m £7,661 per pupil | £7.9m £7,689 per pupil | £3k | — | £17k £16 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£251 +£2 per pupil | £933k £6,617 per pupil | £1.2m £8,348 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £3k £21 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£8k +£21 per pupil | £3.2m £8,757 per pupil | £2.3m £6,278 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £5 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£182k +£264 per pupil | £6.0m £8,677 per pupil | £5.4m £7,789 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2017 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£49k +£265 per pupil | £1.5m £8,129 per pupil | £1.4m £7,355 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£81k +£222 per pupil | £2.3m £6,346 per pupil | £2.2m £6,132 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£85k +£248 per pupil | £2.2m £6,439 per pupil | £2.2m £6,389 per pupil | £429 £1 per pupil | £1 | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£89k +£297 per pupil | £2.3m £7,742 per pupil | £2.2m £7,447 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2010 | — | £5k £17 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£57k +£374 per pupil | £1.4m £8,824 per pupil | £1.2m £8,111 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £3k £20 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£34k +£371 per pupil | £694k £7,543 per pupil | £790k £8,587 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £22 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£321k +£412 per pupil | £6.3m £8,042 per pupil | £5.9m £7,617 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £111k £142 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£59k +£553 per pupil | £891k £8,327 per pupil | £896k £8,374 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £37 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£44k +£788 per pupil | £450k £8,036 per pupil | £504k £9,000 per pupil | £9k | — | £8k £143 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