EVERY CHILD MATTERS ACADEMY TRUST: academy finances
11 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 5 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 0 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 0 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 0 of 11 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £237 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £250 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 | +£143k +£374 per pupil | £2.4m £6,318 per pupil | £2.3m £6,063 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2014 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£142k +£609 per pupil | £1.7m £7,489 per pupil | £1.8m £7,558 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £4 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£131k +£612 per pupil | £1.5m £6,984 per pupil | £1.5m £6,825 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £19 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£225k +£759 per pupil | £2.0m £6,770 per pupil | £2.1m £7,125 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £10k £34 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£276k +£821 per pupil | £2.3m £6,716 per pupil | £2.3m £6,793 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £10k £30 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£266k +£947 per pupil | £1.6m £5,719 per pupil | £1.5m £5,406 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £7k £25 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£286k +£1,960 per pupil | £1.7m £11,452 per pupil | £1.6m £10,966 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £3k £21 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£442k +£1,067 per pupil | £2.5m £5,947 per pupil | £2.6m £6,364 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £10 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£653k +£1,509 per pupil | £3.3m £7,521 per pupil | £3.3m £7,556 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £16k £37 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£291k +£1,567 per pupil | £1.2m £6,631 per pupil | £1.3m £7,019 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £20k £108 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£656k +£2,135 per pupil | £2.5m £8,254 per pupil | £2.7m £8,782 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £5k £16 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