FOCUS ACADEMY TRUST (UK) LTD: academy finances
15 academies with a full-year return, 3 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 15 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 1 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 2 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 2 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 3 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 3 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 3 of 15 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £253 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £267 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 | -£207k -£760 per pupil | £2.1m £7,828 per pupil | £1.9m £6,991 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £4 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£54k -£294 per pupil | £1.3m £6,946 per pupil | £1.4m £7,389 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £3k £16 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£40k -£77 per pupil | £3.4m £6,623 per pupil | £3.1m £6,087 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£41k +£93 per pupil | £2.8m £6,432 per pupil | £2.6m £5,878 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2011 | — | £2k £5 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£103k +£300 per pupil | £2.4m £6,947 per pupil | £2.4m £6,933 per pupil | £6k £19 per pupil | £19 | £9k £26 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£62k +£355 per pupil | £1.4m £7,994 per pupil | £1.4m £7,989 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £28k £159 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£165k +£381 per pupil | £3.0m £6,952 per pupil | £2.8m £6,517 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £18k £42 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£102k +£378 per pupil | £1.6m £6,011 per pupil | £1.7m £6,301 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £51k £189 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£263k +£461 per pupil | £4.1m £7,179 per pupil | £4.0m £6,937 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £10k £18 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£128k +£547 per pupil | £1.8m £7,561 per pupil | £1.6m £6,866 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £4 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£294k +£674 per pupil | £3.1m £7,031 per pupil | £2.8m £6,339 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £3k £7 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£299k +£794 per pupil | £2.5m £6,602 per pupil | £2.5m £6,520 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £11 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£365k +£792 per pupil | £3.0m £6,475 per pupil | £2.9m £6,228 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £8k £17 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