Voluntary funds: what can they be used for?

Read guidance from the Charity Commission and our education experts on using voluntary funds. See examples of how schools use their funds, including cases where the school is registered as a charitable organisation.

Last reviewed on 7 June 2022
School types: All · School phases: All
Ref: 9353
Contents
  1. Check with your LA or the ESFA
  2. There's different advice for schools with charitable status
  3. AP academies can hold voluntary funds, but PRUs cannot
  4. Converting to academy status: what happens to the fund?
  5. Schools with registered funds: examples 
  6. Use of the voluntary fund: example

Non-public funds might be called something else in your school – for example:

  • Private funds
  • School funds
  • Unofficial funds
  • Governors’ funds

For ease, we’re using ‘voluntary funds’ in this article.

Check with your LA or the ESFA

A representative from the Department for Education (DfE) told us that maintained schools should check with their local authority (LA) for guidance on spending their voluntary funds.

Academies should contact the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) for guidance if they have specific questions about how the funds should be spent.

Spending should relate to the reason the funds were raised

For example, spending voluntary funds on

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