THE GRIFFIN SCHOOLS TRUST: academy finances
12 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: 2 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 2 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 2 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 1 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 12 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 1 of 12 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £528 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £558 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 | -£713k -£1,242 per pupil | £6.8m £11,909 per pupil | £7.6m £13,221 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£53k +£257 per pupil | £1.4m £6,836 per pupil | £1.6m £7,594 per pupil | £5k £26 per pupil | £26 | £1k £5 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£165k +£393 per pupil | £3.0m £7,094 per pupil | £2.9m £7,023 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2008 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£659k +£461 per pupil | £10.6m £7,394 per pupil | £11.1m £7,778 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2019 | — | £13k £9 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£256k +£559 per pupil | £2.9m £6,236 per pupil | £3.0m £6,526 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £3k £7 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£333k +£738 per pupil | £3.0m £6,676 per pupil | £3.0m £6,654 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2016 | — | £1k £2 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£135k +£568 per pupil | £1.7m £6,979 per pupil | £1.8m £7,479 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£532k +£1,183 per pupil | £3.4m £7,662 per pupil | £3.6m £7,962 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£391k +£990 per pupil | £2.3m £5,775 per pupil | £2.4m £6,028 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £3 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£469k +£1,229 per pupil | £2.6m £6,729 per pupil | £2.7m £7,201 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £5k £13 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.0m +£1,546 per pupil | £4.8m £7,436 per pupil | £4.9m £7,505 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£768k +£2,292 per pupil | £2.8m £8,281 per pupil | £2.8m £8,293 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £6 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