REDHILL ACADEMY TRUST: academy finances
16 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: 2 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 1 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 1 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 2 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 3 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 4 of 16 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 5 of 16 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £430 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £454 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 | -£173k -£1,941 per pupil | £619k £6,955 per pupil | £735k £8,258 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2009 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£958k -£1,054 per pupil | £7.6m £8,395 per pupil | £7.6m £8,341 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£116k -£688 per pupil | £1.4m £8,172 per pupil | £1.3m £7,941 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£258k -£300 per pupil | £6.0m £7,005 per pupil | £6.1m £7,080 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£19k -£14 per pupil | £10.4m £7,595 per pupil | £10.5m £7,668 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£10k +£43 per pupil | £2.3m £9,365 per pupil | £2.2m £9,290 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£79k +£67 per pupil | £7.8m £6,685 per pupil | £7.7m £6,597 per pupil | £2k £2 per pupil | £2 | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£97k +£110 per pupil | £6.9m £7,842 per pupil | £6.9m £7,833 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2008 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£365k +£232 per pupil | £11.6m £7,368 per pupil | £11.3m £7,188 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£366k +£384 per pupil | £7.2m £7,558 per pupil | £7.4m £7,726 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£654k +£406 per pupil | £13.2m £8,170 per pupil | £12.7m £7,848 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£272k +£931 per pupil | £2.2m £7,387 per pupil | £2.0m £6,894 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.0m +£1,375 per pupil | £7.8m £10,361 per pupil | £7.6m £10,201 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £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