EPA TRUST: academy finances
10 academies with a full-year return, 4 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: 1 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 2 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 3 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 4 of 10 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £330 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £349 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 | -£385k -£587 per pupil | £4.2m £6,481 per pupil | £4.5m £6,860 per pupil | £4k £8 per pupil | £8 | £33k £50 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£91k -£454 per pupil | £1.2m £5,965 per pupil | £1.2m £6,115 per pupil | £12k | — | £5k £25 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£171k -£436 per pupil | £2.3m £5,844 per pupil | £2.5m £6,352 per pupil | £24k | — | £9k £23 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£20k -£155 per pupil | £866k £6,819 per pupil | £916k £7,213 per pupil | £19k £148 per pupil | £148 | £14k £110 per pupil | ||
Heading for deficit | +£62k +£367 per pupil | £1.0m £5,918 per pupil | £1.1m £6,765 per pupil | £14k £83 per pupil | £83 | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£18k +£198 per pupil | £681k £7,323 per pupil | £726k £7,806 per pupil | £11k matched with lower confidence | — | £14k £151 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£515k +£373 per pupil | £9.1m £6,594 per pupil | £9.4m £6,769 per pupil | £4k | — | £135k £98 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£89k +£791 per pupil | £849k £7,547 per pupil | £880k £7,822 per pupil | £7k £60 per pupil | £60 | £7k £62 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£98k +£774 per pupil | £847k £6,669 per pupil | £810k £6,378 per pupil | £4k £34 per pupil | £34 | £12k £94 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£137k +£1,470 per pupil | £767k £8,203 per pupil | £743k £7,947 per pupil | £9k | — | £3k £32 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