RED KITE LEARNING TRUST: academy finances
14 academies with a full-year return, 5 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 8 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 2 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 4 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 4 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 4 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 5 of 14 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 5 of 14 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £405 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £428 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 | -£326k -£846 per pupil | £2.2m £5,738 per pupil | £2.4m £6,280 per pupil | £9k £23 per pupil | £23 | £1k £3 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£125k -£346 per pupil | £1.9m £5,130 per pupil | £1.9m £5,357 per pupil | £28k £77 per pupil | £77 | £5k £14 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£238k -£214 per pupil | £8.0m £7,207 per pupil | £8.2m £7,364 per pupil | £3k | — | £2k £2 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£30k -£127 per pupil | £1.5m £6,244 per pupil | £1.6m £6,667 per pupil | £7k £30 per pupil | £30 | £7k £30 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£105k -£79 per pupil | £9.8m £7,301 per pupil | £10.1m £7,564 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2007 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£286k +£295 per pupil | £8.5m £8,760 per pupil | £8.2m £8,442 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £4 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£168k +£341 per pupil | £2.6m £5,213 per pupil | £2.9m £5,818 per pupil | £7k | — | £37k £75 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£86k +£404 per pupil | £1.2m £5,493 per pupil | £1.2m £5,779 per pupil | £1k £6 per pupil | £6 | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£182k +£431 per pupil | £2.3m £5,448 per pupil | £2.3m £5,547 per pupil | £16k | — | £8k £19 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.8m +£852 per pupil | £15.1m £7,278 per pupil | £17.8m £8,583 per pupil | £25k £12 per pupil | £12 | £342k £165 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£189k +£903 per pupil | £1.2m £5,943 per pupil | £1.3m £6,206 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £10 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£389k +£867 per pupil | £2.5m £5,659 per pupil | £2.5m £5,541 per pupil | £6k £13 per pupil | £13 | £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