Holy Cross Catholic Primary School Pupil Premium Strategy Statement 2020-21
“I was disadvantaged as a child, yet I had the advantage of being in the company of great teachers.”
(A.P.J. Abdul Khan, 11th President of India)
“Every one of our children is carrying something the world is waiting for – it’s just the world hasn’t got it yet,” Sister Judith Russi
The ‘Pupil Premium’ is a government initiative that provides extra funding aimed at pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. Research shows that pupils from deprived backgrounds underachieve compared to their peers and that there is a strong link between eligibility for free school meals and underachievement. The Pupil Premium is designed to help each school boost the attainment of disadvantaged children and reduce the gap between the highest and the lowest achievers. The government has used pupils’ entitlement to free school meals (FSM) and children looked after by the local authority (CLA) as an indicator for deprivation. The funding is allocated according to the number of pupils on roll who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last 6 years (known as ‘Ever6 FSM’), an allocation for each pupil who has been ‘Looked After’ (in care) and a smaller amount for the children of service families.
Principles
- To ensure that teaching and learning opportunities meet the needs of all pupils.
- To ensure that appropriate provision is made for pupils who belong to vulnerable groups, this includes ensuring that the needs of socially disadvantaged pupils are adequately assessed and addressed.
- In making provision for socially disadvantaged pupils, we recognise that not all pupils who receive free school meals will be socially disadvantaged.
- We also recognise that not all pupils who are socially disadvantaged are registered for free school meals. We reserve the right to allocate the Pupil Premium funding to support any pupil, or groups of pupils the schools have legitimately identified as being socially disadvantaged.
- Pupil Premium funding will be allocated following a needs analysis which will identify priority groups or individuals. Limited funding and resources means that not all children receiving free school meals will be in receipt of pupil premium interventions at one time.