Premium Funding
Pupil Premium
Pupil Premium is additional funding given to schools in England to raise the attainment of disadvantaged pupils. Pupils who are eligible for Free School Meals or have been eligible for Free School Meals during the previous six years, this is known as Ever 6, receive Pupil Premium funding, as are children whose Parents/Carers are in the services. Children who have been Looked After for one day or more, were adopted from care on or after 30th December 2005, have a special guardianship order or a residence order receive Pupil Premium Plus funding.
The Government believes that the Pupil Premium is the best way to address the current underlying inequalities between eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) and their peers. Each individual school is held accountable for how they use their Pupil Premium allocation, in order that the funding is targeted towards those pupils who need it the most. It is for the school to decide how the Pupil Premium is spent. Each school is responsible for monitoring both the use of the funding an the impact it is having upon relevant pupils.
PE and Sports Funding
The government has allocated £150 million on improving physical education (PE) and sport in primary schools.
Schools must spend the funding to improve the quality of the PE and sport activities they offer their pupils but they are free to choose the best way of using the money.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Catch-up Premium
Following the partial closure of schools in March 2020 until September 2020, the government acknowledge that some pupils have not accessed education in its usual and fullest format and as such have acknowledged that there is a catchup element which needs to be identified and supported by schools.
The government has allocated each school £80 per pupil to enable schools to meet the needs of the pupils. Schools will need to determine how this funding is best spent.