UNITY EDUCATION 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 5 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 1 of 7 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 4 of 14 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 3 of 14 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 14 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 £1,007 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £1,064 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 | -£375 -£6 per pupil | £508k £7,815 per pupil | £533k £8,200 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £5k £77 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£189k +£159 per pupil | £8.1m £6,810 per pupil | £8.2m £6,883 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2017 | — | £3k £3 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£69k +£339 per pupil | £1.8m £8,637 per pupil | £1.6m £8,088 per pupil | £4k £18 per pupil | £18 | £2k £10 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£54k +£1,384 per pupil | £987k £25,308 per pupil | £959k £24,590 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£34k +£584 per pupil | £573k £9,712 per pupil | £522k £8,847 per pupil | £0 £0 per pupil | £0 | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£383k +£6,170 per pupil | £2.3m £36,790 per pupil | £2.5m £40,694 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£116k +£1,407 per pupil | £668k £8,097 per pupil | £611k £7,406 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2010 | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£111k +£1,783 per pupil | £626k £10,097 per pupil | £575k £9,274 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£152k +£1,465 per pupil | £770k £7,440 per pupil | £720k £6,957 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£221k +£2,586 per pupil | £899k £10,515 per pupil | £884k £10,339 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.4m +£6,213 per pupil | £5.8m £25,328 per pupil | £4.9m £21,472 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2009 | — | £12k £52 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£128k +£2,756 per pupil | £505k £10,860 per pupil | £425k £9,140 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£123k +£2,621 per pupil | £472k £10,043 per pupil | £497k £10,574 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 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