SCHOLARS' EDUCATION TRUST: academy finances
10 academies with a full-year return, 0 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 5 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 1 of 5 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 1 of 5 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 5 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 5 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 0 of 10 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £340 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £359 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Healthy | +£72k +£606 per pupil | £881k £7,466 per pupil | £922k £7,814 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £8 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£491k +£620 per pupil | £6.1m £7,751 per pupil | £6.0m £7,593 per pupil | £9k £12 per pupil | £12 | £13k £16 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.2m +£865 per pupil | £11.4m £7,922 per pupil | £11.3m £7,832 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2023 | — | £2k £1 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£237k +£1,068 per pupil | £2.0m £9,117 per pupil | £1.9m £8,495 per pupil | £4k £17 per pupil | £17 | £8k £36 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£937k +£957 per pupil | £7.8m £7,974 per pupil | £7.9m £8,064 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2010 | — | £12k £12 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£202k +£938 per pupil | £1.3m £5,916 per pupil | £1.3m £6,037 per pupil | £28k | — | £6k £28 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£909k +£1,125 per pupil | £5.4m £6,678 per pupil | £5.4m £6,639 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2019 | — | £4k £5 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£2.2m +£1,370 per pupil | £10.7m £6,804 per pupil | £11.2m £7,071 per pupil | £37k £24 per pupil | £24 | £50k £32 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£2.0m +£1,463 per pupil | £9.4m £6,930 per pupil | £9.8m £7,262 per pupil | £16k £12 per pupil | £12 | £42k £31 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.9m +£1,478 per pupil | £9.3m £7,265 per pupil | £9.4m £7,282 per pupil | £2k £2 per pupil | £2 | £5k £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