What is the difference between Pupil Premium and Free School Meals?
Pupil Premium funding was introduced by the Government to raise the attainment of disadvantaged pupils of all abilities and to close the ‘gap’ between them and their peers. For those children who are eligible, the school will receive money for these children. The school then plans on how to spend this money (with input from families) to best support those children and indeed all children who attend our school. All Saints CE First School has fewer pupils who are in receipt of FSM when compared with other schools. However, we view the needs of all of our children as important and we strive to create the best opportunities and experiences for every single pupil at the school.
The introduction of the Government scheme of universal free school meals until the end of Key Stage One has been a success in our school. However, this scheme runs alongside that of Pupil Premium. All children up to the end of Key Stage One will receive a free school meal should they wish regardless of background, but that does not mean that if your family are entitled to claim the Pupil Premium funding that our school will automatically get this money. If you are eligible to claim for Free School Meals for your child, but perhaps they are not interested in actually taking the meals, please consider making a claim anyway. The school will not receive the money unless you do – and every additional £1300 helps us to support all of our pupils, not just those who are Pupil Premium children. If you’re unsure whether you qualify, you can check your eligibility online using the online checker or feel free to pop in to the School Office and they will support you. All claims are dealt with in confidence.
The Pupil Premium money continues if the child has been in receipt of the funding in the last six years. We also receive money for pupils with parents who are serving in the Armed Forces or any adopted or looked after children (LAC).
Service Pupil Premium (SPP)
The SPP is there for schools to provide mainly pastoral support for service children, whereas the Pupil Premium was introduced to raise attainment and accelerate progress within disadvantaged groups. Schools can decide along with parents the best way to spend this money. If you or your partner are a member of the Armed Forces, or your child has been registered as a ‘service child’ in the school census at any point since 2011, or are in receipt of a pension under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme or the War Pensions Scheme, please let us know so that we can claim the extra funding that this generates for our school. A letter or email is all that is needed, we don’t need to see any wage slips or other evidence.
Looked After Children Premium (LAC)
For those children who may be adopted or looked after, the DfE will allocate to local authorities a provisional amount of up to £1,900 per child. To receive this finding, a child must have been in the care of, or provided with accommodation by, an English local authority for at least one day, adopted or provided with a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order. This money is managed by a Virtual Headteacher who then allocates a proportion of the funds to the school.
We are required to publish how much Pupil Premium money we receive and how we have chosen to spend that money.
The documents below show how that money has been spent and what impact it has had and our plans for using the grant in the future.
Links
Pupil Premium Guidance from the DfE