Pupil Premium, FSM and Statutory Information

What is Pupil Premium?

The Pupil Premium was introduced by the Coalition Government in April 2011 to provide additional support for looked after children and those from low income families. Those in receipt of the Pupil Premium must be in school years 7-11 and will fall in to one of these categories:

The pupil is eligible for Free School Meals.
The pupil has been eligible for Free School Meals at some point in the last 6 years.
The pupil is a child of parent(s) in the Armed Forces.
The pupil has been adopted from the care of the local authority.
The pupil is a looked after child.

The extra funding is made available to schools to help them narrow the attainment gap that still exists between pupils from disadvantaged and more affluent backgrounds. The Pupil Premium is additional to main school funding and it will be used by this school to address any underlying inequalities between children eligible by ensuring that funding reaches the pupils who need it most.

Our vision at Altwood C of E School goes beyond simply narrowing the gap between those who are economically advantaged and those who are not. We are determined to ensure that all pupils, irrelevant of background or prior attainment, have the skills and qualifications so that they may realise their potential and achieve their dreams.

Please check using the link below to see if you are eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) funding.

Eligibility for Free School Meals RBWM

If you have any queries regarding free school meals and Pupil Premium funding, please contact the school:

Email: finance@altwoodschool.co.uk

Tel: 01628 622236

Why is it important?

Research shows that students from deprived backgrounds underachieve compared to their non-deprived peers. Often, children who are entitled to pupil premium face challenges such as poor language and communication skills, lack of confidence and issues with attendance and punctuality. The Pupil Premium is provided in order to support these students in reaching their potential by accelerating their progress.

“Our data shows that it doesn’t matter if you go to a school in Britain, Finland or Japan, students from a privileged background tend to do well everywhere. What really distinguishes education systems is their capacity to deploy resources where they can make the biggest difference. Your effect as a teacher is a lot bigger for a student who doesn’t have a privileged background than for a student who has lots of educational resources”

Andreas Schleicher, Times Educational Supplement, 2013

Moving forward our aim to diminish the difference and give students the opportunity to become the best version of themselves will be fulfilled through the following areas of focus:

To provide quality first teaching to all students which will benefit PP students and therefore to narrow the gap academically by raising the attainment of pupil premium students
To use evidence based targeted academic support to raise attainment and progress for PP students
To use a range of wider strategies to address non-academic barriers to support the success of PP students (attendance focus)
Provide opportunities to widen life experiences

Roles and Responsibilities

All members of staff and governors accept responsibility for those pupils recognised as disadvantaged and are committed to meeting their pastoral, social and academic needs. Every child who is considered to be disadvantaged is valued, respected and entitled to develop to his/her full potential, irrespective of disadvantage.

All school staff are responsible for:

Knowing which students are pupil premium within their classes
Implementing this policy on a day-to-day basis
Setting high expectations for all pupils, including those eligible for the pupil premium
Identifying pupils whose attainment is not improving in response to interventions funded by the pupil premium, and highlighting these individuals to the Senior Leadership Team
Sharing insights into effective practice with other school staff

The Headteacher and Senior Leadership Team are responsible for:

Keeping this policy up to date, and ensuring that it is implemented across the school
Ensuring that all school staff are aware of their role in raising the attainment of disadvantaged pupils and supporting pupils with parents in the armed forces
Planning pupil premium spending and keeping this under constant review, using an evidence-based approach
Monitoring the attainment and progress of pupils eligible for the pupil premium to assess the impact of the school’s use of the funding
Reporting on the impact of pupil premium spending to the governing board on an ongoing basis
Publishing the school’s pupil premium strategy on the school website each academic year, as required by the DfE
Providing relevant training for staff, as necessary, on supporting disadvantaged pupils and raising attainment

Governors are responsible for:

Holding the Headteacher and Senior Leadership Team to account for the implementation of this policy
Ensuring the school is using pupil premium funding appropriately, in line with the rules set out in the conditions of grant
Monitoring the attainment and progress of pupils eligible for the pupil premium, in conjunction with the headteacher and Senior Leadership Team, to assess the impact and effectiveness of the school’s use of the funding
Monitoring whether the school is ensuring value for money in its use of the pupil premium
Challenging the Headteacher and Senior Leadership Team to use the pupil premium in the most effective way.
Setting the school’s ethos and values around supporting disadvantaged members of the school community