Pupil Premium
Pupil premium is a specific allocation of additional funding provided to schools to support targeted groups of children who are vulnerable to possible under achievement. These include pupils who are entitled to free school meals in the last 6 years; those looked after by the local authority and children of Armed Forces Personnel. Pupil Premium Plus is specific, additional funding for children who are adopted or looked after by the local authority.
Nationally, statistics show that pupils who are in receipt of Free School Meals do less well than their peers in external exams. The aim of this additional money is to try and close this gap in attainment. Our school pupil premium allocation supports the varying needs of our vulnerable children. The pupil premium funds are allocated each year following a needs analysis which prioritises the most vulnerable groups and individuals in terms of their academic progress and emotional well being.
It is up to schools to decide how the Pupil Premium is spent since they are best placed to assess what additional provision should be made for the individual pupils within their responsibility. Limited funding to resources means that not all children receiving free school meals will be in receipt of pupil premium interventions at the same time.
At St John’s, we are committed to closing the attainment gap between our disadvantaged pupils and their peers, and we hope to do this by ensuring that all our children have access to an engaging and inspiring curriculum with the best teaching and learning and targeted support possible. We closely track the attainment progress of the children who attract pupil premium funding.
All schools are required to publish on their website what funding they have received, and how the money is being spent. Please see the attached document which details how Pupil Premium money is spent at Deepcar St John’s.