XAVIER CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST: academy finances
19 academies with a full-year return, 0 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 10 academies in deficit
- 2019-20: 1 of 13 academies in deficit
- 2020-21: 0 of 14 academies in deficit
- 2021-22: 0 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2022-23: 0 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2023-24: 0 of 15 academies in deficit
- 2024-25: 0 of 19 academies in deficit
in 2025-26 prices (HM Treasury GDP deflator, October 2026)
In 2023-24 the trust spent £346 per pupil centrally (cash), money that is not counted in its academies' own spending, or £366 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Healthy | +£80k +£188 per pupil | £2.3m £5,472 per pupil | £2.4m £5,634 per pupil | £22k £51 per pupil | £51 | £35k £83 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£322k +£239 per pupil | £9.3m £6,909 per pupil | £10.3m £7,656 per pupil | £13k £9 per pupil | £9 | £131k £97 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£62k +£299 per pupil | £1.2m £6,000 per pupil | £1.2m £5,879 per pupil | £20k | — | £14k £68 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£145k +£338 per pupil | £2.3m £5,373 per pupil | £2.5m £5,734 per pupil | £31k £72 per pupil | £72 | £74k £172 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£76k +£360 per pupil | £1.2m £5,687 per pupil | £1.3m £6,009 per pupil | £7k £35 per pupil | £35 | £3k £14 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£155k +£361 per pupil | £2.4m £5,519 per pupil | £2.4m £5,651 per pupil | £24k £56 per pupil | £56 | £19k £44 per pupil | ||
Healthy | +£177k +£421 per pupil | £2.4m £5,711 per pupil | £2.5m £6,086 per pupil | £26k £63 per pupil | £63 | £37k £88 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£247k +£597 per pupil | £2.3m £5,502 per pupil | £2.5m £6,056 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £80k £193 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£134k +£643 per pupil | £1.2m £5,587 per pupil | £1.2m £5,596 per pupil | £15k £74 per pupil | £74 | £26k £125 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£1.6m +£872 per pupil | £13.5m £7,281 per pupil | £14.7m £7,961 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £74k £40 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£469k +£656 per pupil | £3.9m £5,426 per pupil | £4.2m £5,833 per pupil | No registered parents' association found | — | £35k £49 per pupil | ||
Large reserves | +£304k +£742 per pupil | £2.3m £5,715 per pupil | £2.4m £5,946 per pupil | £21k £51 per pupil | £51 | £180k £439 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