MELROSE LEARNING TRUST: academy finances
11 academies with a full-year return, 6 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.
- 2023-24: 1 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 6 of 11 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £459 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £485 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 | -£162k -£1,042 per pupil | £922k £5,910 per pupil | £1.0m £6,417 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£36k -£361 per pupil | £702k £7,127 per pupil | £775k £7,868 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£20k -£207 per pupil | £703k £7,400 per pupil | £760k £8,000 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£34k -£75 per pupil | £2.5m £5,676 per pupil | £2.6m £5,773 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£9k -£27 per pupil | £1.9m £5,315 per pupil | £2.1m £5,884 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2009 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£5k -£18 per pupil | £1.6m £6,038 per pupil | £1.6m £6,223 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2009 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£6k +£30 per pupil | £1.3m £6,500 per pupil | £1.4m £6,623 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£83k +£374 per pupil | £1.6m £7,163 per pupil | £1.5m £6,624 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£264k +£572 per pupil | £2.5m £5,329 per pupil | £2.7m £5,810 per pupil | £10k | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£115k +£1,227 per pupil | £879k £9,401 per pupil | £856k £9,155 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2011 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£339k +£1,445 per pupil | £1.7m £7,416 per pupil | £1.6m £6,729 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £4 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