Cost per pupil place (£/place)
Median and IQR £/pupil place by phase and form-entry size, anchored on LGA Bench. 2024 and NAO January 2025.
Median £/pupil place (all-in)
| Archetype | Places | £/place median | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1FE primary | 210 | £22,800 | [LGA] |
| 2FE primary | 420 | £21,700 | [LGA] |
| 3FE primary | 630 | £21,000 | [LGA] |
| 6FE secondary | 900 | £33,100 | [LGA] |
| 8FE secondary | 1,200 | £31,700 | [LGA] |
| SEN 60-place | 60 | £78,800 | [LGA] |
| SEN 120-place | 120 | £74,300 | [LGA] |
| Sixth-form 250 | 250 | £28,400 | [LGA] |
Why £/place drops as the school gets bigger
The marginal cost of an extra pupil place falls as a school's shared accommodation (hall, kitchen, plant, M&E backbone, external play) is amortised across more children. The drop is steepest from 1FE to 2FE primary and from 6FE to 8FE secondary; beyond 10FE the curve flattens. NAO January 2025[NAO] framed the cost-per-place trajectory in its condition-of-school-buildings report.
SRP cost-per-place
Under the School Rebuilding Programme, the DfE's standard designs target around £29-35K per place for secondary and £20-24K for primary, in line with the LGA medians above[SRP]. The April 2026 intake closed; the next intake date had not been confirmed at time of writing.
For per-archetype worked examples, see 2FE primary, 6FE secondary, or SEN 60-place.