THE GORSE ACADEMIES TRUST: academy finances
15 academies with a full-year return, 1 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: 0 of 11 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 0 of 11 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 0 of 11 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 1 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 14 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 1 of 15 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £467 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £494 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 | -£297k -£486 per pupil | £6.7m £10,921 per pupil | £7.4m £12,106 per pupil | £82 £0 per pupil | £0 | £1k £2 per pupil | ||
Heading for deficit | +£53k +£261 per pupil | £1.1m £5,252 per pupil | £1.4m £6,728 per pupil | £5k | — | £2k £10 per pupil | ||
Heading for deficit | +£209k +£640 per pupil | £2.4m £7,387 per pupil | £2.6m £8,031 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Heading for deficit | +£647k +£3,388 per pupil | £3.1m £16,105 per pupil | £4.5m £23,691 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£457k +£314 per pupil | £10.0m £6,859 per pupil | £9.5m £6,513 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£84k +£503 per pupil | £1.8m £10,655 per pupil | £1.7m £10,018 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £6 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£274k +£415 per pupil | £3.9m £5,900 per pupil | £3.7m £5,569 per pupil | £15k £23 per pupil | £23 | £1k £2 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£629k +£451 per pupil | £8.3m £5,928 per pupil | £7.5m £5,359 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £1 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£449k +£708 per pupil | £5.7m £8,994 per pupil | £5.5m £8,695 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£710k +£473 per pupil | £11.5m £7,652 per pupil | £10.1m £6,750 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2011 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.1m +£835 per pupil | £11.2m £8,775 per pupil | £9.8m £7,661 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.2m +£874 per pupil | £11.9m £8,367 per pupil | £11.0m £7,739 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £34k £24 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.0m +£737 per pupil | £10.1m £7,374 per pupil | £8.8m £6,401 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £1 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