Wade Deacon Trust

UID 3528·Companies House 08278808·Incorporated November 2012·Compare

Schools

Flags

10 high severity

Finance: 2025/26Ofsted: Mar 2024Performance: 2025/26Workforce: 2025/26Attendance: 2025/26

Total income

£49.1m

5,855 pupils

Avg staff costs

72.5%

of income

Avg reserves

7.5%

of income

Avg absence

7.3%

Persistent: 22.3%

More metrics

Avg FSM

43.2%

free school meals

Capacity

92%

5,855 / 6,386 places

Total admin cost

£4.2m

£711 per pupil

Trust overview

1 of 10 schools have staff costs above the DfE's 78% review threshold — review against school context.

4 of 10 schools have reserves below the DfE's 5% minimum.

2 of 10 schools had expenditure exceeding income this year.

Overall absence is above the national average in 70% of schools (7 of 10).

6 schools have persistent absence above 20%.

90% of inspected schools are rated Good or Outstanding across sub-judgements.

Reference points from DfE published guidance. Whether any metric warrants action depends on the trust's context and strategy.

Ofsted sub-judgements

Quality of education

86% Good+

Outst. 2Good 4Inad. 1

Behaviour & attitudes

86% Good+

Outst. 2Good 4RI 1

Personal development

86% Good+

Outst. 2Good 4RI 1

Leadership & management

90% Good+

Outst. 2Good 7Inad. 1

Performance (trust avg)

Key Stage 4

Attainment 8

42.9

-3.3

vs national

Key Stage 2

Expected standard (RWM)

45.9%

-15.1pp

vs national

National averages: 2023/24

Trust details

AddressC/O Wade Deacon High School, Widnes, WA8 7TD

Companies House08278808

Incorporated2 November 2012

Year	Schools	Pupils	Total income	Total expenditure	Avg staff costs %	Avg reserves %
2021/22	8	5,346	£38.1m	£36.0m	72.9%	10.2%
2022/23	8	5,464	£41.8m	£40.2m	75.0%	8.0%
2023/24	9	5,649	£47.8m	£47.1m	72.4%	7.8%
2024/25partial	10	5,982	£1.3m	£1.3m	73.1%	5.2%

Central services — 2023/24

Centralisation

3.6%

of total trust spend

Typical MAT centralisation ranges from 3-7% of total trust spend. Figures below 2% may indicate limited central coordination; above 10% warrants review of value for money.

CS expenditure

£1,807,000

CS staff costs

£1,196,000

CS income

£245,000

Admin & clerical£818,000

Teaching staff£267,000

ICT£200,000

Premises£5,000

Legal & professional£198,000

Auditor costs£42,000

Governance

Accounts to Aug 2025Source: Companies House

8 current directors · Average tenure: 7.9 years · 1 change in last 12 months

Directors / Trustees (8)

John Anthony Price

director·2 years

Karen Ann Highcock

director·2 years

Derek Darlington

director·6 years

Paul Fowler

director·6 years

Christine Elizabeth Marsland

director·8 years

Nicholas Mcgee

director·9 years

Colin Mcleod

director·13 years

Ian Hann

director·13 years

Company Secretary

Ian Robert Kirkham

secretary·7 years

8 former officers — most recent departure: Jun 2025

Mary Elizabeth Murphy

director·2 years·Resigned Jun 2025

Andrew Moss

director·6 years·Resigned Aug 2020

Preeti Choudhary

director·6 years·Resigned Mar 2022

Mary Elizabeth Murphy

director·6 years·Resigned Aug 2022

Michael Dickinson

director·9 years·Resigned Aug 2023

Pamela Avril Wright

Member schools (10)

10 schools|10 with risk flags|8 high severity

School	URN	Phase	Risk flags
Halewood Academy	139614	Secondary	high absenceworkforce pressure
Hillside High School	141693	Secondary	high absenceworkforce pressure
Oakdene Primary Academy	151020	Primary	in year deficitworkforce pressure
Sylvester Primary Academy	143878	Primary	in year deficit
The Grange School	144617	All-through	workforce pressurehigh absenceperformance decline
Wade Deacon High School	139368	Secondary	workforce pressure
Weston Point Primary Academy	150204	Primary	ofsted concernhigh staff costsin year deficitworkforce pressure
Whiston Willis Primary Academy	145613	Primary	workforce pressureperformance decline
Widnes Academy	141538	Primary	workforce pressureperformance decline
Yew Tree Primary Academy	146115	Primary	high absencehigh staff costsworkforce pressureperformance decline