Pupil Premium
Pupil Premium is an amount of money allocated to a school that aims to narrow the gap in achievement and attainment between children entitled to free school meals (FSM) and their non-FSM peers. The government introduced pupil premium with the aim of increasing social mobility, enabling more pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds to have higher aspirations for their academic future and to raise the social capital for all these pupils.
Three categories of pupils are eligible:
- Pupils recorded as ‘ever 6 FSM’ (pupils who are or have been eligible for FSM at any point during their 6 years of Primary school education)
- Looked after children and those children who have been adopted from care
- Children of Service personnel
Pupil Premium is allocated straight to the school. Schools are free to spend the Pupil Premium as they feel is appropriate. The government thinks that schools are best placed to assess what additional provision should be made for individual pupils within their responsibility.
“It is for the schools to decide how the Pupil Premium, allocated to schools per FSM pupil, is spent, since they are best placed to assess what educational provision should be made for the individual pupils within their responsibility.”
At Horsenden Primary School the Pupil Premium funding means that we can target academic support where it is needed, and ensure that everyone has access to the range of activities on offer, regardless of social background.
All schools are held accountable for how they have used additional funding to support pupils from low-income families and in care. The schools must report and publicise annually how the money has been spent and what the impact has been made on the achievements of the pupils.
Pupils who are eligible for the pupil premium need to be aged 4 and over, in year groups Reception to year 11 in a maintained school. The proportion of children eligible at Horsenden Primary is currently 20%.