Fundraising for academy trusts – the next opportunity?

An increasing number of academy trusts are looking at additional funding possibilities.

By September, budgets for the next academic year have already been set and multi-academy trusts will already know the amounts which will be received through the general annual grant allocation and other funding allocations. Although per pupil levels have risen, in many cases they are outstripped in real terms by partially funded pay awards, increased utilities and other operational costs, impacting on the opportunities that can be provided to pupils.

Independent schools have long undertaken additional fundraising “in-house”, from parents, alumni and wider donors, to help build new facilities, subsidise school trips or provide bursaries. For the state sector, any limited fundraising has historically been undertaken voluntarily by parent teacher associations (Read our article on whether PTAs should seek charitable registration). Is there a way for multi-academy trusts to capitalise on a broad potential donor base and create additional funding opportunities in the 2026/27 academic year?

Potential considerations

• People tend to support or donate to an entity with which they have a connection, which in the case of a multi-academy trust might be an individual school within that trust. Money donated for a particular purpose (i.e. to support a particular school) must be used for that purpose (i.e. could not be used to support other schools within the trust). Multi-academy trusts would need to consider how any fundraising could be carried out to allow flexibility for the end use of the funds, without alienating potential donors. The wording of the donation request from the multi-academy trust, or the wording used by the donor when making the donation, can impact on whether a legal restriction is created.

• The practical and administrative arrangements of having separate ‘pots’ for individual schools will need to be taken into account, with a clear understanding as to who holds (and therefore distributes or applies) the funds. It will be important for trust leaders to appreciate the legal restrictions on the uses for those ‘pots’.

• A large proportion of school fundraising comes from a small core of donors, often parents or alumni. Keeping track of those fundraising relationships is important, but schools and multi-academy trusts should seek advice as needed,  to ensure that any personal information is dealt with in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018.

Useful resources

For any organisations undertaking fundraising, whether for the first time or as part of an established programme, the Code of Fundraising Practice from the Fundraising Regulator is helpful for understanding the limitations and restrictions on fundraising activities. 

Wrigleys is a corporate partner of the Institute of Development Professionals in Education, which offers a state school fundraising toolkit which multi-academy trusts might find helpful when getting started.

If you would like to discuss any aspect of this article further, please contact our Education team on 0113 244 6100.

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The information in this article is necessarily of a general nature. The law stated is correct at the date (stated above) this article was first posted to our website.

Specific advice should be sought for specific situations. If you have any queries or need any legal advice, please feel free to contact Wrigleys Solicitors.