Pupil Premium

What is the Pupil Premium?

The Pupil Premium grant is funding to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged children
in state-funded schools in England. Saddleworth School receives additional funding for:

· Students who are recorded as eligible for free school meals, or have been recorded as eligible in the past 6 years, including eligible children of families who have no recourse to public funds (NRPF).
· Children looked after by local authorities, referred to as looked-after children.
· Children previously looked after by a local authority or other state care, referred to as previously looked-after children.

How Can Pupil Premium Funding be Spent?

This funding is not a personal budget for individual children, schools must spend their funding in line with the ‘menu of approaches’ identified by the Department for Education. We have based our spending priorities on research, such as the EEF Teaching and Learning Toolkit, which provides guidance for schools on how to use their resources to improve the attainment of disadvantaged students.

At Saddleworth School we have identified three key strands which are advised by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) as best-practice for schools in closing gaps for disadvantaged learners. We recognise that in raising the achievement of disadvantaged students and promoting their wider personal development, we will also raise achievement and wider personal development of all students.

This is how our Pupil Premium allocation will be spent:
1. Developing high quality teaching
2. Targeted Academic Intervention
3. Wider Strategies

Is my child eligible for free school meals?

Families who receive certain benefits may be eligible for free school meals.

Your child may be eligible for free school meals if you are in receipt of one of the following benefits: –
· Universal Credit with an annual net earned income of no more than £7,400 (after tax and not including any benefits)
· 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 guaranteed element of Pension Credit.
· Working Tax Credit run-on (paid for four weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit)
· Child Tax Credit (provided you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190).

Children who get paid these benefits directly, instead of through a parent or guardian, can also get free school meals. Registering for free meals will provide your child’s secondary school with an additional £1035 per year, to invest in high quality teaching and additional teachers; provide targeted academic tuition and to support issues that are impacting on attendance, behaviour or wellbeing. If your child is eligible for free school meals, they’ll remain eligible until they finish the phase of schooling (primary or secondary)

This additional money is available from central government for every child whose parent is receiving one of the benefits listed above. The funding is designed to raise the attainment of disadvantaged students and narrow any gaps that exist between them and their peers. Schools are awarded the Pupil Premium funding to deploy according to their context and to see the greatest impact on improving the academic and personal development of the young people identified.

How do you apply for free school meals?

You can apply online for free school meals with Oldham Council at:
https://www.oldham.gov.uk/forms/form/525/en/free_school_meals_fsm_application_form

You do not need to re-apply for free school meals every year unless your circumstances change.
If you have any queries about free school meals you can contact Oldham Council on:

Phone: 0161 770 6688 Email: benefits@oldham.gov.uk

What is Pupil Premium Plus?

Pupil Premium Plus funding is available to schools for children who have been adopted or are under a specific order directly after being in care. This funding is currently an additional £2,530 per year, per child, to support the education of children who were previously in care but for whom this has stopped due to one of the following criteria:

· Through a Special Guardianship Order (SGO)
· Through A Residence Order (RO)
· Through a Child Arrangement Order (CAO)

Schools are not advised whether a child has ever been in care or adopted. It is therefore for those with parental responsibility to decide if they wish to let the school know their child’s status.

As this is a sensitive issue this notification is to allow you to make the choice whether or not you wish to disclose this information. All information received will be treated in strictest confidence.

This additional funding under the title of Post Looked After Arrangement, is only eligible for children who fit the criteria listed. If your child fits any of the criteria listed and you are willing for this information to be included in a Department for Education (DfE) Statutory return, please contact the Headteacher giving the name and date of birth of the child concerned. You will then be contacted and asked to provide supporting evidence, e.g. the Adoption (Court) Order. In order to claim the funding for the next financial year the information will need to be included in the Census return that is sent to the DfE each Autumn.

Pupil Premium Plus funding is not ring-fenced. It is designed to provide specific support to raise attainment and address the wider needs of children in this potentially vulnerable group. Support ranges from academic

tuition and resources to emotional support. National statistics show that children who have previously been in care may face unique challenges and will benefit from targeted support to help their personal and academic development.

There is no obligation for you to share this information with us.

Service Pupil Premium

Service pupil premium is additional funding for schools with students who have parents who serve in the armed forces.

The service pupil premium grant, awards £335 per eligible student to schools, if they meet one or more 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 – this includes pupils with a parent who is in the armed forces of another nation and is stationed in England.
· registered as a ‘service child’ on any school census in the past 6 years.
· one of their parents died while serving in the armed forces and the pupil receives a pension under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme or the War Pensions Scheme.

This funding is mainly to ensure schools can offer pastoral support and help mitigate the impact of family mobility or parental deployment. It can also be used to help improve the academic achievement of eligible students if the school deems this to be appropriate.

Further information:
• Free School Meals (FSM) eligibility checker: www.oldham.gov.uk/freeschoolmeals
• Children and family benefits: www.oldham.gov.uk/info/200230/early_years/194/children_and_family_benefits
• Benefits checker https://www.entitledto.co.uk/