TRURO & PENWITH ACADEMY TRUST: academy finances
40 academies with a full-year return, 12 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 25 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 2 of 28 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 3 of 29 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 2 of 29 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 5 of 33 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 5 of 34 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 9 of 34 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £413 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £436 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 | -£948k -£3,337 per pupil | £2.6m £9,310 per pupil | £2.9m £10,088 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2017 | — | £1k £4 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£259k -£2,223 per pupil | £1.3m £11,433 per pupil | £1.4m £12,275 per pupil | £2k £17 per pupil | £17 | £4k £34 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£139k -£963 per pupil | £950k £6,597 per pupil | £1.0m £7,201 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £14 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£48k -£510 per pupil | £641k £6,819 per pupil | £617k £6,564 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £21 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£338k -£588 per pupil | £4.4m £7,605 per pupil | £4.3m £7,502 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£246k -£980 per pupil | £3.3m £13,048 per pupil | £3.6m £14,347 per pupil | £2k £8 per pupil | £8 | £7k £28 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£27k -£316 per pupil | £579k £6,852 per pupil | £668k £7,905 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £4k £47 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£21k -£358 per pupil | £495k £8,534 per pupil | £532k £9,172 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £17 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£40k -£190 per pupil | £1.6m £7,686 per pupil | £1.6m £7,724 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£9k -£92 per pupil | £692k £6,851 per pupil | £682k £6,752 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £10 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£41k -£74 per pupil | £4.4m £7,923 per pupil | £4.3m £7,729 per pupil | £4k | — | £2k £4 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£181 -£0 per pupil | £5.0m £7,492 per pupil | £5.0m £7,587 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £18k £27 per pupil | ||
Heading for deficit | +£124k +£93 per pupil | £9.7m £7,294 per pupil | £10.0m £7,553 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £2k £2 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