THE TALENTUM LEARNING TRUST: academy finances
9 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.
- 2019-20: 1 of 8 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 1 of 9 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 9 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 9 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 1 of 9 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 1 of 9 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £363 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £384 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 | -£3k -£12 per pupil | £2.1m £8,335 per pupil | £2.1m £8,213 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £4 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£115k +£430 per pupil | £1.6m £5,963 per pupil | £1.6m £5,981 per pupil | £4k | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£78k +£542 per pupil | £944k £6,556 per pupil | £980k £6,806 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2016 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£438k +£569 per pupil | £5.4m £6,984 per pupil | £5.2m £6,769 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £1 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£155k +£680 per pupil | £1.4m £6,018 per pupil | £1.5m £6,512 per pupil | £8k £33 per pupil | £33 | £65k £284 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£64k +£1,465 per pupil | £442k £10,161 per pupil | £431k £9,908 per pupil | £10k £226 per pupil | £226 | £2k £46 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£537k +£1,232 per pupil | £3.3m £7,619 per pupil | £3.1m £7,183 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £3k £7 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£236k +£1,502 per pupil | £1.1m £7,051 per pupil | £1.1m £6,713 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £13 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£127k +£1,668 per pupil | £579k £7,618 per pupil | £571k £7,513 per pupil | £4k £56 per pupil | £56 | £1k £13 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