10 questions every MAT leader should be able to answer about their supply spend before June 2026

Where does your trust sit on supply spend, and are you ready for June 2026?

Supply is one of the largest variable cost lines in most trusts. It sits at the intersection of staffing, absence management, procurement, and operational practice. Data is often disperseed across systems, and the drivers sit in different parts of the organisation. That complexity makes consistent oversight more challenging. The latest national picture, drawn from DfE data on academy trusts, makes the case for urgency clear. 1 in 10 academy trusts spend more than 5% of their total budget on supply staff. Some trusts exceed 10%. In many cases, boards see a headline figure in finance reporting, with limited analysis of the drivers sitting underneath it.

Key findings

Variation between comparable schools

Trusts of comparable size, phase and context can spend three to four times more per pupil on supply than their peers. That variation is not explained by agency rates or local labour market conditions. It reflects what is happening inside individual schools.

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Teacher sickness

Teacher sickness is one of the most significant variables in the national data. Trusts in the highest sickness quartile spend 68% more per pupil on supply than those in the lowest. Sickness patterns are shaped not only by context but by absence culture, return-to-work processes and leadership expectations.

Higher supply spend and lower pupil attainment

There is a consistent relationship between higher supply spend and lower pupil attainment. This makes supply spend both a financial and an educational question, and the two are increasingly difficult to separate.

If you are not sure where your trust sits in the national picture, we can show you using published DfE data before you commit to anything further. The right first step is a 30-minute conversation: book a call with one of the team.

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