KING'S GROUP ACADEMIES: academy finances
14 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: 1 of 6 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 1 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 0 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 1 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 1 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 1 of 9 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 4 of 14 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £302 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £319 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 | -£431k -£7,310 per pupil | £1.8m £30,136 per pupil | £1.9m £32,847 per pupil | £16k £271 per pupil | £271 | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£724k -£1,128 per pupil | £4.6m £7,159 per pupil | £4.8m £7,489 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2019 | — | £3k £5 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£1.4m -£696 per pupil | £14.6m £7,243 per pupil | £15.4m £7,655 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2011 | — | £2k £1 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£46k -£221 per pupil | £1.5m £7,375 per pupil | £1.5m £7,005 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £5 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£151k +£441 per pupil | £1.9m £5,621 per pupil | £2.0m £5,732 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £5k £15 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£210k +£469 per pupil | £2.6m £5,893 per pupil | £2.7m £6,011 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £6k £13 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£756k +£731 per pupil | £7.9m £7,683 per pupil | £8.1m £7,785 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2012 | — | £13k £13 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.3m +£1,014 per pupil | £10.2m £8,103 per pupil | £9.6m £7,598 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2006 | — | £11k £9 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£2.3m +£1,627 per pupil | £10.5m £7,290 per pupil | £10.4m £7,205 per pupil | Registered, no income filed yet | — | £5k £3 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£339k +£1,622 per pupil | £1.4m £6,732 per pupil | £1.5m £7,177 per pupil | £11k £53 per pupil | £53 | £1k £5 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£753k +£1,846 per pupil | £2.9m £7,194 per pupil | £2.8m £6,946 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£413k +£1,685 per pupil | £1.6m £6,563 per pupil | £1.6m £6,327 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£3.1m +£2,459 per pupil | £11.2m £8,780 per pupil | £10.1m £7,894 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £1 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