Guidance

Schools’ costs: technical note

Information to help schools, academies and others understand costs for schools in England.

• From: Department for Education
• Published: 1 February 2018
• Last updated: 2 March 2026
  Show all updates

  1. 2 March 2026

     Added 'Schools' costs: 2024 to 2029'.

  2. 18 March 2025

     Added 'Schools' costs: 2024 to 2026'.

  3. 29 February 2024

     Added 'Schools' costs: 2023 to 2025'.

  4. 21 February 2023

     'Schools' costs 2022 to 2024' has been added to the page. The document includes a new analysis of costs in 2022 to 2023 and 2023 to 2024.

  5. 1 March 2022

     Added 'Schools' costs: 2021 to 2024'.

  6. 28 January 2021

     Added 'Schools’ costs: 2020 to 2021 (Jan 2021)'.

  7. 31 January 2019

     Updated document with improved analysis, local government pension scheme cost changes, pay increases and other data described in the methodology section.

  8. 1 February 2018

     First published.

Applies to England

Documents

Schools' costs: 2025 to 2029

PDF, 649 KB, 40 pages

Schools' costs: 2024 to 2026

PDF, 587 KB, 33 pages

Schools' costs: 2023 to 2025

PDF, 298 KB, 27 pages

Schools' costs: 2022 to 2024

PDF, 315 KB, 22 pages

Schools' costs: 2021 to 2024

PDF, 346 KB, 22 pages

Schools’ costs: 2020 to 2021

Ref: DfE-00015-2021

PDF, 246 KB, 13 pages

Schools’ costs: 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 (Jan 2019)

Ref: DFE-00031-2019

PDF, 304 KB, 14 pages

Schools’ costs: 2018 to 2019 and 2019 to 2020 (Feb 2018)

Ref: DFE-00022-2018

PDF, 243 KB, 16 pages

Details

These technical notes provide information to help school leaders, governors and academy trusts, researchers and others understand costs for schools in England, at the national level, in the short to medium term.