Southern Cross School: school finances
Tight
Holds £193k in reserve, under 3% of a year's income: little room for surprises.
Latest full year 2023-24, as a council-run school (CFR return, April–March). Manchester · Not applicable · Academy special converter.
Earlier years come from this school's return before it became an academy (a different DfE number).
A 2024-25 return is published too, but it covers part of a year or leaves out the income or reserve figure, so the latest complete year is shown.
Reserve at the end of each year, 2018-19 to 2023-24
Income and spending, 2018-19 to 2023-24
Income Spending
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Income | Spending | Balance | Reserve | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018-19 | £3.0m | £3.0m | -£30k | £78k | 120 |
2019-20 | £3.3m | £3.4m | -£41k | £37k | 132 |
2020-21 | £3.4m | £3.4m | +£33k | £69k | 132 |
2021-22 | £4.9m | £4.3m | +£635k | £705k | 120 |
2022-23 | £6.0m | £6.0m | -£21k | £684k | 129 |
2023-24 | £7.0m | £7.5m | -£491k | £193k | 154 |
Compared with similar schools
Similar schools are the 30 special schools outside London closest in size and in the share of pupils on free school meals. Its reserve, as a share of income, is higher than 20% of them. It spends £48,560 a pupil in total; similar schools typically spend £29,659.
This school Middle half of similar schools Similar schools’ median
Show the comparison as a table
| Spending per pupil | This school | Similar schools (median) | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|
Teachers | £11,869 | £11,200 | £8,698–£13,547 |
Support staff (e.g. TAs) | £9,800 | £8,092 | £6,441–£10,475 |
Supply staff | £7,037 | £829 | £300–£1,796 |
Admin and clerical | £1,518 | £1,304 | £962–£1,993 |
Premises | £2,067 | £1,575 | £960–£2,452 |
Energy | £726 | £415 | £297–£603 |
Learning resources & ICT | £4,906 | £1,142 | £788–£2,385 |
Bought-in services | £1,248 | £867 | £319–£1,597 |
Compare side by side with the 3 most similar schools
Which schools are these?
- Pioneer House High School Large reserves
- Lindsworth School Large reserves
- Meade Hill School Tight
- Silverdale School In deficit
- Discovery Special Academy Healthy
- Woodfield Large reserves
- New Park Academy Large reserves
- Pennine View School Large reserves
- Elms School Large reserves
- Knowle DGE Academy Large reserves
- Pine Green Academy Large reserves
- Emily Wilding Davison School In deficit
Where the money comes from, 2023-24
| Source | Amount | Per pupil |
|---|---|---|
Government grants | £6.3m | £40,740 |
SEN funding (part of grants) | £3.6m | £23,622 |
Pupil premium (part of grants) | £133k | £864 |
Self-generated (lettings, catering, donations) | £982k | £6,376 |
Questions to ask the school
Useful for parents, governors and PTA committees.
- What would the school do if costs rose unexpectedly, such as energy or a pay award that isn't fully funded?
- Spending on supply staff is £7,037 a pupil, against a typical £829 for similar schools. What's behind that?
- Spending on learning resources & ict is £4,906 a pupil, against a typical £1,142 for similar schools. What's behind that?
- Spending on energy is £726 a pupil, against a typical £415 for similar schools. What's behind that?
Check these figures
Every figure here comes from the school's published return to the DfE. Check it on the DfE benchmarking page for this school, and see how the status is worked out.
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