WESSEX LEARNING TRUST: academy finances
20 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 8 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 0 of 9 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 0 of 14 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 1 of 14 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 1 of 17 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 1 of 17 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 1 of 20 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £357 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £377 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 | -£47k -£331 per pupil | £908k £6,394 per pupil | £920k £6,479 per pupil | £24k £168 per pupil | £168 | £12k £85 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£7k +£139 per pupil | £564k £10,951 per pupil | £587k £11,398 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2011 | — | £13k £252 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£25k +£384 per pupil | £620k £9,612 per pupil | £635k £9,845 per pupil | £4k £56 per pupil | £56 | £6k £93 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£20k +£503 per pupil | £409k £10,225 per pupil | £394k £9,850 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £7k £175 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£804k +£765 per pupil | £7.8m £7,405 per pupil | £10.0m £9,525 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £16k £15 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£62k +£846 per pupil | £631k £8,644 per pupil | £678k £9,288 per pupil | £8k £103 per pupil | £103 | £12k £164 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£117k +£688 per pupil | £996k £5,859 per pupil | £1.0m £6,006 per pupil | £17k | — | £12k £71 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£119k +£835 per pupil | £1.0m £7,091 per pupil | £1.1m £7,455 per pupil | £11k £75 per pupil matched with lower confidence | £75 | £19k £133 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£117k +£828 per pupil | £923k £6,546 per pupil | £923k £6,546 per pupil | £8k £54 per pupil | £54 | -£3k -£21 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.1m +£957 per pupil | £8.3m £7,137 per pupil | £8.8m £7,569 per pupil | £12k £10 per pupil | £10 | £76k £66 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£290k +£921 per pupil | £1.9m £5,924 per pupil | £2.0m £6,317 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £24k £76 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£172k +£944 per pupil | £1.1m £6,071 per pupil | £1.1m £6,104 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2018 | — | £24k £132 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