Pupil Premium is funding to improve education outcomes for disadvantaged pupils in schools in England. Evidence shows that disadvantaged children generally face additional challenges in reaching their potential at school and often do not perform as well as other pupils. 

Pupil Premium funding is allocated to Schools on the following basis: 

  • £1,480 per pupil recorded as Eligible for Free School Meals in the last 6 years (Ever 6 FSM) 
  • £2,570 per looked-after child (LAC) define in the Children Act 1989 as one who is in the care of, or provided with accommodation by, an English local authority 
  • £2,570 per pupil who has ceased to be looked after by a local authority in England and Wales because of adoption, a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order 

This money is specifically designed to help us raise the achievement level of the students in these groups who have previously been identified as being disadvantaged through economic hardship. We also receive a premium for students whose parents are currently serving in the armed forces. 

For more Information on how Pupil Premium Funding is spent in schools please visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium/pupil-premium 

Free School Meals

In April 2018, the criteria used to determine which pupils are eligible for free school meals was updated to reflect the introduction of Universal Credit and the phasing out of other income-based benefits.

Eligibility Criteria for Free School Meals

Free school meals are available to parents who are in receipt of one or more of the following benefits:

  • Universal credit - if you apply on or after 1 April 2018 your household income must be less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including any benefits you receive). 
  • Income Support
  • Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
  • Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
  • Support under Part 6 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
  • The guarantee element of state Pension Credit
  • Child Tax Credit (but not Working Tax Credit) and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190)
  • Working Tax Credit run-on - paid for four weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit

Transitional Protections

In addition, the following children will be protected against losing their free school meals as follows:

  • From 1st April 2019, all existing free school meals claimants will continue to receive free school meals whilst Universal Credit is rolled out. This will apply even if their earnings rise above the new threshold during that time
  • In addition, any child gaining eligibility for free school meals after 1st April 2018 will be protected against losing free school meals during the Universal Credit rollout period. 
  • Once Universal Credit is fully rolled out, any existing claimants that no longer meet the eligibility criteria at that point (because they are earning above the threshold or are no longer a recipient of Universal Credit) will continue to receive free school meals until the end of their current phase of education (i.e. primary or secondary).

The Universal Credit rollout is currently expected to complete in March 2022. new applicants for free school meals on or after 1st April 2018, who are in receipt of Universal Credit and have earnings above the earned income threshold, will not be eligible for free school meals. 

Protection for Younger Siblings

Transitional protections are put in place on an individual child basis, not on a family basis. This means that younger children will not become entitled to free school meals simply because their older sibling is in receipt of transitional protections. Extending transitional protections to families would lead to unfairness in the system for those children without older siblings. The younger child must meet the eligibility criteria at the time the application for free school meals is made in order to be entitled to free school meals.

Twin Sails Infant School & Nursery - Pupil Premium Strategies

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Hamworthy Park Junior School - Pupil Premium Strategies

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Education Endowment Foundation - simplified Tiered Model for Pupil Premium Strategy

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The Service Premium

What is the Service Pupil Premium?

The Department for Education (DfE) introduced the Service Pupil Premium (SPP) in April 2011 in recognition of the specific challenges children from service families face and as part of the commitment to delivering the Armed Forces covenant.

State schools, academies and free schools in England, which have children of service families in school years reception to year 11, can receive the SPP funding. It is designed to assist the school in providing the additional support that these children may need and is currently worth £310 per service child who meets the eligibility criteria. Eligibility criteria Pupils attract SPP if they meet one of the following criteria:

  • One of their parents is serving in the regular Armed Forces (including pupils with a parent who is on full commitment as part of the full time reserve service)
  • They have been registered as a ‘service child’ on a school census since 2016, see note on the DfE’s ever 6 service child measure
  • One of their parents died whilst serving in the Armed Forces and the pupil receives a pension under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme or the War Pensions Scheme
  • Children have to be flagged as service children ahead of the autumn school census deadline.

Service parents need to make the school aware of their status by filling in the annual pupil contact form.

The purpose of the Service Pupil Premium Eligible schools receive the SPP so that they can offer mainly pastoral support during challenging times and to help mitigate the negative impact on service children of family mobility or parental deployment.
Mobility is when a service family is posted from one location to another, including overseas and within the UK. Deployment is when a service person is serving away from home for a period of time. This could be a 6 to 9-month tour of duty, a training course or an exercise which could last for a few weeks.

School Approaches to the spending of the Service Premium:

  • Children eligible for the Service Premium are prioritised for focused attendance support to ensure they are able to access regular education
  • Monitoring of service pupils’ progress compared to the wider school population to ensure that they learn, develop and achieve well
  • Monitoring of the well-being of pupils and actions put in place to support pupils where needed, including support from the Class Teacher, Teaching Support Staff and Pastoral team
  • On-going pastoral support for identified pupils, individualised to meet pupil needs, including: Pastoral 1-1 sessions; Focused Pastoral support; Listening Ear box; Therapeutic play; PAT Dog; & ELSA.
  • Links to Early Help support and signposting of support services where appropriate
  • ‘Forces group’ meetings with the pastoral care team. At the Infant school, this includes the opportunity to play alongside other Service pupils with specially purchased toys and equipment within the children’s year group, alongside the pastoral care lead. At the Junior school, this involves: regular group discussion and activities to encourage the children to share their feelings with each other in a safe environment. This also involves playing games and using resources specifically targeted for our Service children around issues of deployment and mobility.
  • Opportunities through the Pastoral Team to learn and explore outdoors with the ‘Forces group’ to help develop children’s self-esteem and confidence, including use of the garden, beach and Hamworthy Park.
  • Where additional support is needed for children and their families, support is provided for them on an individual basis, in liaison with Parents, the Teacher, SLT and the Pastoral Team.
  • An end of year Forces Fun Day is organised by the Pastoral Team for the Service children to enjoy together. This usually involves inflatables on the school field or a visit to the local beach.

All our service families may feel their children need differing levels of support at different times in their life. Please ensure you speak to your child's class teacher if you have any worries or concerns which the school may be able to help with. 
For more information, please visit our Service Groups page by clicking here.