Pupil Premium

Statement of Intent

Our intention is that all pupils, regardless of background or any external obstacles to education, can access our curriculum and enrichment opportunities and make good academic progress, in line with that of their peers. The focus of our strategy is to ensure positive outcomes, academically and in terms of personal development, for all children irrespective of starting points or ongoing challenges.

We are aware that some children face significant obstacles which may prove a barrier to accessing their learning. We will ensure that our approach remains sensitive to this, without ever allowing it to act as a ceiling to our high aspirations for what our children can achieve. We will work hard to support our children in overcoming these challenges, which may include non-academic support.

High-quality, well-planned and well-resourced teaching is at the heart of our approach. This has the greatest impact on the outcomes of all children, pupil-premium and non- pupil-premium alike. We also place well-planned and co-ordinated intervention at the root of our push for excellent outcomes for all children, including closing gaps where they exist, for which adequate resourcing and provision is vital.

This strategy feeds into our wider recovery plans following the pandemic, and is rooted in a clear understanding of where needs lie and what strategies are most effective for addressing them. Our approach will be responsive to the needs of all, whilst acknowledging that those with the greatest need should always be the foremost in our planning when implementing our strategy.

What is Pupil Premium?

The Pupil Premium was introduced in April 2011 and is allocated to schools to improve the achievement of pupils who have been registered for free school meals at any point in the last six years (known as “Ever 6” FSM). Schools also receive funding for children who have been “looked after” continuously for more than six months, and children of service personnel.

Why has it been introduced?

The Government believes that the Pupil Premium, which is additional to main school funding, is the best way to address the current underlying inequalities between children eligible for free school meals (FSM) and their peers by ensuring that funding to tackle disadvantage reaches pupils who need it most.

Who decides how the money is spent?

In most cases the Pupil Premium is paid directly to schools, allocated to them for every pupil who receives free school meals. Schools decide how to use the funding, as they are the best placed to assess what their pupils need.

How are schools accountable for the spending of Pupil Premium?

They are held accountable for the decisions they make through:

• The performance tables which show the performance of disadvantaged pupils compared with their peers.
• The OFSTED inspection framework, under which inspectors focus on the attainment of pupil groups, in particular those who attract the Pupil Premium.
• Our Pupil Premium report - which makes our spending plans public and approach for improving provision clear.