FORWARD AS ONE CHURCH OF ENGLAND MULTI ACADEMY TRUST: academy finances
14 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.
- 2019-20: 0 of 6 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 0 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 0 of 14 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £421 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £445 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tight | +£20k +£88 per pupil | £1.7m £7,514 per pupil | £1.6m £7,423 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £9k £41 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£18k +£89 per pupil | £1.2m £5,639 per pupil | £1.5m £7,139 per pupil | £13k £61 per pupil | £61 | £7k £34 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£20k +£84 per pupil | £1.4m £5,791 per pupil | £1.4m £5,883 per pupil | £6k | — | £5k £21 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£18k +£149 per pupil | £929k £7,615 per pupil | £1.1m £8,746 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £8 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£48k +£227 per pupil | £1.8m £8,381 per pupil | £2.0m £9,348 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £5 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£43k +£178 per pupil | £1.4m £5,893 per pupil | £1.6m £6,594 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£45k +£209 per pupil | £1.2m £5,563 per pupil | £1.2m £5,712 per pupil | £28k £131 per pupil | £131 | £13k £60 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£92k +£434 per pupil | £1.5m £6,974 per pupil | £1.5m £6,898 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £9 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£139k +£550 per pupil | £1.7m £6,850 per pupil | £1.7m £6,553 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £8 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£216k +£853 per pupil | £1.6m £6,430 per pupil | £1.6m £6,438 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £4 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£444k +£1,365 per pupil | £2.3m £7,124 per pupil | £2.5m £7,714 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £5k £15 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£223k +£1,944 per pupil | £881k £7,694 per pupil | £1.0m £9,109 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £35 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