ROMERO CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST: academy finances
16 academies with a full-year return, 3 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.
- 2020-21: 0 of 6 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 6 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 9 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 11 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 3 of 16 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £254 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £268 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 | -£156k -£312 per pupil | £4.1m £8,228 per pupil | £4.3m £8,509 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £2 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£4k -£18 per pupil | £1.3m £6,165 per pupil | £1.4m £6,399 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£3k -£16 per pupil | £1.2m £6,199 per pupil | £1.3m £6,338 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | -£30k -£149 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£32k +£39 per pupil | £7.2m £8,885 per pupil | £6.8m £8,305 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £1 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£124k +£110 per pupil | £8.7m £7,726 per pupil | £8.9m £7,868 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£101k +£736 per pupil | £1.6m £11,766 per pupil | £1.6m £11,584 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £7 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£825k +£647 per pupil | £10.6m £8,274 per pupil | £10.8m £8,489 per pupil | Registered, no income filed yet | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£131k +£669 per pupil | £1.4m £7,287 per pupil | £1.4m £6,928 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £6k £31 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£189k +£915 per pupil | £1.4m £6,607 per pupil | £1.4m £6,578 per pupil | £8k £36 per pupil | £36 | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£312k +£1,471 per pupil | £1.6m £7,462 per pupil | £1.6m £7,344 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£266k +£1,265 per pupil | £1.3m £6,129 per pupil | £1.4m £6,443 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £5 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£212k +£1,763 per pupil | £961k £8,008 per pupil | £876k £7,300 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