Pupil Premium
What is Pupil Premium?
Pupil Premium is funding allocated to schools for the specific purpose of boosting the attainment of pupils from low-income families. The Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) is additional funding for early years settings to improve the education they provide for disadvantaged 3- and 4-year-olds. All children who currently qualify for free school meals based on their family circumstances are entitled to pupil premium.
The purpose of the pupil premium is to improve attainment for disadvantaged learners. It follows that the funding should be used to ensure these pupils receive consistently excellent teaching. In some cases, it should be used to maximise access to quality first teaching.
Schools can choose how to spend their pupil premium money, as they are best placed to identify what would be of most benefit to the children who are eligible.
Common ways in which schools spend their pupil premium fund include:
- Extra one-to-one or small-group support for children within the classroom.
- Employing extra teaching assistants to work with classes.
- Running catch-up sessions before or after school, for example for children who need extra help with maths or literacy.
- Running a school breakfast club to improve attendance.
- Providing extra tuition for able children.
- Providing music lessons for children whose families would be unable to pay for them.
- Funding educational trips and visits.
- Paying for additional help such as speech and language therapy or family therapy.
- Funding English classes for children who speak another language at home.
- Investing in resources that boost children’s learning, such as laptops or tablets.
