Downham Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School: school finances
Healthy
Holds £52k in reserve, 4% of a year's income.
Latest full year 2024-25, as a council-run school (CFR return, April–March). Essex · Primary · Academy converter.
Earlier years come from this school's return before it became an academy (a different DfE number).
A 2025-26 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 2024-25
Income and spending, 2018-19 to 2024-25
Income Spending
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Income | Spending | Balance | Reserve | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018-19 | £1.0m | £1.0m | +£13k | £88k | 226 |
2019-20 | £1.1m | £1.1m | -£1k | £87k | 226 |
2020-21 | £1.1m | £1.0m | +£32k | £119k | 216 |
2021-22 | £1.1m | £1.1m | -£71k | £48k | 217 |
2022-23 | £1.1m | £1.1m | -£34k | £14k | 219 |
2023-24 | £1.2m | £1.2m | +£35k | £49k | 194 |
2024-25 | £1.2m | £1.2m | +£3k | £52k | 191 |
Compared with similar schools
Similar schools are the 30 primary 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 40% of them. It spends £6,091 a pupil in total; similar schools typically spend £6,415.
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 | £2,562 | £3,203 | £3,082–£3,460 |
Support staff (e.g. TAs) | £811 | £1,009 | £821–£1,297 |
Supply staff | £36 | £110 | £37–£178 |
Admin and clerical | £248 | £327 | £242–£416 |
Premises | £267 | £308 | £248–£396 |
Energy | £202 | £91 | £74–£120 |
Learning resources & ICT | £360 | £288 | £195–£360 |
Bought-in services | £864 | £146 | £97–£264 |
Compare side by side with the 3 most similar schools
Which schools are these?
- St Bees Village Primary School Healthy
- Grange CofE Primary School Healthy
- St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Whickham Large reserves
- Mottram St Andrew Primary Academy Healthy
- St Briavels Parochial Church of England Primary School Large reserves
- West Chiltington Community Primary School Healthy
- The Priory Catholic Voluntary Academy In deficit
- Alverstoke Community Infant and Pre-School Large reserves
- Tattenhall Park Primary School In deficit
- West Oxford Community Primary School Healthy
- Burbage Primary School Healthy
- Boyne Hill CofE Infant and Nursery School In deficit
Where the money comes from, 2024-25
| Source | Amount | Per pupil |
|---|---|---|
Government grants | £1.1m | £5,816 |
SEN funding (part of grants) | £44k | £228 |
Pupil premium (part of grants) | £22k | £113 |
Self-generated (lettings, catering, donations) | £55k | £289 |
Money raised by parents
DOWNHAM CHURCH OF ENGLAND CONTROLLED PRIMARY SCHOOL PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION (charity 1104105, Registered) raised £19k in its latest year.
| Year ending | Income | Spending |
|---|---|---|
2025-08 | £19k | £16k |
2024-08 | £12k | £13k |
2023-08 | £18k | £12k |
2022-08 | £30k | £41k |
2021-08 | £14k | £10k |
Matched to this school by name and postcode from the Charity Commission register. Parent associations' money isn't in the school's accounts above.
Questions to ask the school
Useful for parents, governors and PTA committees.
- Pupil numbers have fallen 15% since 2018-19. How is the school planning for fewer pupils, and the funding that goes with them?
- Spending on bought-in services is £864 a pupil, against a typical £146 for similar schools. What's behind that?
- Spending on energy is £202 a pupil, against a typical £91 for similar schools. What's behind that?
- How does the school decide what the money the parents' association raises is spent on?
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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