IVY LEARNING TRUST: academy finances
15 academies with a full-year return, 7 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 9 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 1 of 9 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 2 of 10 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 7 of 15 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £597 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £631 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 | -£256k -£1,644 per pupil | £1.3m £8,341 per pupil | £1.3m £8,302 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £26 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£206k -£1,103 per pupil | £1.5m £7,781 per pupil | £1.4m £7,615 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £11 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£307k -£734 per pupil | £2.5m £6,022 per pupil | £2.6m £6,323 per pupil | £43k £102 per pupil | £102 | £38k £91 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£208k -£462 per pupil | £3.3m £7,356 per pupil | £3.3m £7,412 per pupil | £12k | — | £1k £2 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£55k -£216 per pupil | £1.4m £5,355 per pupil | £1.5m £5,727 per pupil | £34k £135 per pupil | £135 | £36k £141 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£40k -£224 per pupil | £1.1m £5,994 per pupil | £1.1m £6,033 per pupil | £34k £192 per pupil | £192 | £53k £294 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£27k -£123 per pupil | £1.5m £6,890 per pupil | £1.6m £7,338 per pupil | £13k | — | £21k £96 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£133k +£300 per pupil | £2.5m £5,727 per pupil | £2.6m £5,903 per pupil | £21k | — | £12k £27 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£287k +£605 per pupil | £4.4m £9,194 per pupil | £4.1m £8,618 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2010 | — | £5k £11 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£99k +£432 per pupil | £1.4m £6,088 per pupil | £1.4m £6,162 per pupil | £19k £83 per pupil | £83 | £9k £39 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£336k +£692 per pupil | £4.1m £8,480 per pupil | £3.8m £7,724 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £2 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£285k +£671 per pupil | £3.4m £7,986 per pupil | £3.1m £7,340 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2011 | — | £5k £12 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£303k +£518 per pupil | £3.4m £5,746 per pupil | £3.1m £5,287 per pupil | £13k £22 per pupil | £22 | £0 £0 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