Pupil Premium

What is the Pupil Premium?

The Pupil Premium was introduced by the Government in April 2011. It was designed to give additional money to support schools in raising the attainment of children who receive free school meals, children whose parents serve in the Armed Forces and those children in local authority care. These groups of children have been identified nationally as achieving at a lower level than children from less disadvantaged backgrounds.

Where does the money come from?

Pupil Premium is allocated to schools based on the number of children who are currently known to be eligible for Free School Meals (FSM), whose parents serve in the Armed Forces and children who have been looked after in local authority care continuously for more than six months.

The purpose of the Pupil Premium is to help schools to provide targeted support for vulnerable children- not necessarily just children who qualify for FSM.

It is for schools to decide how the Pupil Premium is spent, since they are best placed to assess what additional provision should be made for the individual pupils within their responsibility. However, schools are to be held accountable for how they have used the additional funding to support pupils from low-income families. The school is required to publish online how this money is spent.

How much funding does the school receive?

The Pupil Premium Grant per pupil for 2023 to 2024 is as follows:

The provision may include:

Achievement and standards – work including additional class based or intervention activities to accelerate progress for targeted groups or individuals, alongside tracking systems to monitor pupil progress.

Pastoral work – supporting pupils with emotional or socially related issues which inhibit learning, impact on self-esteem or mental health.

Out of hours and enrichment – to ensure that pupils are given the opportunity to develop a range of talents including sport and creativity, also improving self-confidence and motivation for learning.

Residential learning – to enable pupils to develop new skills as well as independence and confidence through access to alternative activities that the school cannot offer on site.

How will the school measure the impact of the Pupil Premium?

At St. Aidan’s Primary School, we are committed to ensuring all our children make the best possible progress. We track the achievement of every child termly and then plan appropriate intervention to address any identified needs. We regularly assess the impact of any interventions funded by pupil premium in order to ensure that they are effective and targeted towards the children who need them.