What is the Pupil Premium Grant?

The school receives Pupil Premium Grant [PPG] funding, which is additional to the main school budget. The Pupil Premium funding is allocated to pupils who are either currently eligible for free school meals or who have been eligible in the last 6 years, known as ‘Ever 6’. Pupil Premium for Looked-after children (LAC) as defined in the Children Act 1989 as one who is in the care of, or provided with accommodation by, an English Local Authority.

 What is Pupil Premium Grant money used for?

Pupil Premium funding is intended to address the historic underachievement of children from poorer backgrounds in this country. By giving schools additional money when they have families from poorer backgrounds, the Government is seeking to ‘diminish the difference’ in achievement, meaning that any student from any background should be able to achieve at a high level. The money is intended to support schools to ensure this happens for students in their care.

Pupil Premium funding at Staples Road is spent on a range of support and additional intervention which ensures that every child succeeds. You can read in more detail about our spending and the review of our impact and see the planned expenditure in the documents below. As a school we understand that not all socially disadvantaged pupils will be eligible for free school meals, for example those without recourse to public funds, and we reserve the right to allocate pupil premium funding to those children we identify as socially disadvantaged. 

How is the impact monitored?

Assessment procedures at Staples Road are robust and we are relentless in monitoring and evaluating the progress of all children. This is done in our pupil progress meetings each term, where we identify any child who is not on track or has not made adequate progress, and then put in place targeted support for them. Please see the Pupil Premium Statement using the link below for more details.

What are the main barriers to educational achievement faced by eligible pupils of the school?

We always seek to understand every child and their family as individuals and understand that generalisations are not always helpful. However, some common challenges for eligible pupils include:

• Reduced experience of nursery settings and lack of a language rich environment, resulting in lower attainment on entry
• A narrower physical sphere or experience; they may have had less opportunity to travel outside of the immediate area or to access a wide range of opportunities and experiences
• They may have had less access to books, toys and other resources which support early learning and development
• Some families experience housing challenges and this can have very significant negative impact on them, including tiredness, personal hygiene, hunger, fear and anxiety
• Some children experience a poor diet
• Some children experience the effects of substance misuse or domestic violence
• Some children have parents in prison

These challenges mean that we support the pupils in 4 areas:

• Focus on academic support
• Focus on social, emotional and behaviour
• Focus on enrichment and widening opportunity
• Focus on families/community

How can I apply for PPG funding?

Please click on the link below if you wish to apply for free school meals for your child (Years 3-6), which will ensure PPG access. Not only will successful applicants save hundreds of pounds in school dinner costs each year, but you will also be eligible for half-price school trips. The Pupil Premium Grant is also used in many other ways, including the cost of employing extra staff and running support groups, as well as  the purchase of specific resources to help improve learning.

Parents of children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 can also trigger funding to the school for the Pupil Premium Grant, despite the fact that they already receive free school meals. Please speak to Mrs Pacitto in the school office who will provide you with an application form to do this.