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Pupil Premium

The pupil premium is additional funding for publicly funded schools in England to raise the attainment of disadvantaged pupils and close the gap between them and their peers.

“It is for schools to decide how the Pupil Premium, allocated to schools per FSM pupil, is spent, since they are best placed to assess what additional provision should be made for the individual pupils within their responsibility.” 

Source – DfE website

Pupil Premium at The Gordon Children’s Academy

Strategy 2023-24

Policy

At The Gordon Children’s Academy, we have high aspirations and ambitions for all our children and we believe that no child should be left behind. We strongly believe that it is not about where you come from but your passion and thirst for knowledge, and your dedication and commitment to learning that make the difference between success and underachievement.

We are determined to ensure that our children are given every chance to realise their full potential. Pupil premium funding, along with allocations made from the schools own budget will help ensure this money is spent to maximum effect.

Pupil Premium Spending

Our pupil premium money has been used to provide a range of additional support for our children and these interventions, along with quality first teaching have started to have a positive impact on children’s attainment and self-belief.

Through targeted interventions we are working hard to eliminate barriers to learning and progress. One of the schools aims is to ensure that ALL groups of pupils make good progress in order to reach age related expectations as they move through the school.

Targeted support is being provided through one-to-one and small group tuition. These interventions support children in knowing where they are and what they need to do to improve their work.

Information to be published to parents

Schools are required to publish their ‘PUPIL PREMIUM STRATEGY.’

This should include:

  1. In the previous academic year:
  • how the pupil premium allocation was spent
  • the impact of the expenditure on eligible and other pupils

This evaluation can be found in the Pupil Premium Strategy 2019-2020

  1. The current academic year:
  • the amount of the school’s allocation of pupil premium grant
  • details of the main barriers to educational achievement
  • how the allocation will be spent to address the barriers and why these approaches were taken
  • how the school will measure the impact of the pupil premium
  • the date of the next pupil premium strategy review.

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

The School measures the impact of the Pupil Premium spending by:

  • Tracking and monitoring the progress of Pupil Premium students each term to compare their attainment and achievement to Non Pupil Premium students and other groups of students in the School e.g. SEN/EAL.
  • This also includes an analysis of the results of boys and girls.
  • Assessing the success of students at the end of Key Stage 2 relative to their target grades and against national threshold measures.
  • Producing termly reports for the Head Teacher, TSAT and SLT on the progress of Pupil Premium students across the whole school in each year group and across individual subject areas compared to all students and other significant groups of students across the School.
  • Ensuring that we are focused on closing the gap in progress and attainment between those in receipt of pupil premium and those who are not.
  • Review the impact of actions taken and plan for how funding will be specifically allocated over the next phase.

Financial year 2021-2022

In the 2021 to 2022 financial year, schools will receive the following funding for each child registered as eligible for free school meals at any point in the last 6 years:

  • £1,345 for pupils in reception year to year 6

Schools will also receive £2,345 for each pupil who has left local-authority care because of 1 of the following:

  • adoption
  • a special guardianship order
  • a child arrangements order
  • a residence order

If a pupil has been registered as eligible for free school meals and has also left local-authority care for any of the reasons above, they will attract the £2,345 rate.

Children who have been in local-authority care for 1 day or more also attract £2,345 of pupil premium funding. Funding for these pupils doesn’t go to their school; it goes to the virtual school head (VSH) in the local authority that looks after the child. VSHs are responsible for managing pupil premium funding for looked-after children.

Eligibility for Free School Meals

A parent may wish to check their child’s eligibility for Pupil Premium.

You will need to enter your name, address, national insurance number or asylum support service number.  In addition, you will need to provide your child’s name, date of birth and identify the school they are attending.

Eligibility Criteria

Parents/guardians in England do not have to pay for school meals if they receive any of the following:

  • Income Support
  • Income-Based Jobseeker’s Allowance
  • Income related Employment and Support Allowance
  • Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
  • Child Tax Credit, provided they are not entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual income (as assessed by HM Revenue & Customs) that does not exceed £16,190
  • Working Tax Credit ‘run-on’ – the payment someone may receive for a further four weeks after they stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
  • Guarantee element of State Pension Credit

Pupil Premium is an important payment for schools and a really good opportunity for eligible parents to get even more support for their children in schools.

If you have any questions or would like to know more about Pupil Premium funding and how it is being used to benefit your child, please speak to a member of the Senior Leadership team or the Inclusion Manager.

If you think your child may possibly be eligible for free school meals, even if you don’t want your child to eat school meals, please still complete the online application.  Every child who is eligible generates valuable income for the school and supports children’s progress.  Please complete the application by clicking on the link below:

Apply for free school meals | Free school meals | Medway Council