WHITE WOODS PRIMARY ACADEMY TRUST: academy finances
14 academies with a full-year return, 3 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 13 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 3 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 3 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 4 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 5 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 5 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 3 of 14 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £671 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £709 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 | -£412k -£2,226 per pupil | £1.5m £7,854 per pupil | £1.3m £7,157 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £5k £27 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£146k -£951 per pupil | £1.1m £7,020 per pupil | £1.0m £6,739 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £5k £33 per pupil | ||
In deficit | -£68k -£400 per pupil | £1.1m £6,472 per pupil | £1.1m £6,260 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£15k +£82 per pupil | £1.1m £6,053 per pupil | £1.1m £5,603 per pupil | £2k | — | £2k £11 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£27k +£123 per pupil | £1.4m £6,431 per pupil | £1.4m £6,408 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Tight | +£39k +£188 per pupil | £1.3m £6,110 per pupil | £1.3m £6,100 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £3k £14 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£35k +£336 per pupil | £708k £6,808 per pupil | £644k £6,192 per pupil | Had a registered PTA until 2010 | — | £5k £48 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£176k +£531 per pupil | £2.1m £6,323 per pupil | £2.0m £6,133 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£314k +£719 per pupil | £2.4m £5,574 per pupil | £2.3m £5,288 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £2 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£319k +£1,359 per pupil | £2.3m £9,667 per pupil | £2.0m £8,333 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£265k +£1,122 per pupil | £1.8m £7,548 per pupil | £1.7m £7,049 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £1k £4 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£401k +£1,247 per pupil | £1.9m £5,935 per pupil | £1.7m £5,400 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £0 £0 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£345k +£1,398 per pupil | £1.5m £6,251 per pupil | £1.4m £5,607 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