Pupil premium is additional funding received by schools for each pupil from disadvantaged families or backgrounds. Findings show that, as a group, children who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in time have consistently lower educational attainment than those who have never been eligible for free school meals. 

The funding is allocated to schools based on the number of children who meet one (or more) of the following criteria:

• pupils who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years

• children who have been looked after continuously for more than six months

• children where a parent serves in the armed forces

Whilst pupil premium funds are used to benefit these pupils, the activities and resources can benefit a wider group depending on need identification.

At Our Lady’s we recognise the importance of ensuring that all children have the opportunity to learn and therefore creating sustainable systems which enable all to flourish and become lifelong learners is central to any spending planned. 

As we plan our strategy to make additional provision made for pupils who belong to vulnerable groups, the Governors and staff of Our Lady’s strive to ensure that the needs of socially disadvantaged pupils are adequately assessed and clarified at termly pupil progress meetings. In making provision for socially disadvantaged pupils, the Governors and staff of Our Lady’s recognise that not all pupils who receive free school meals will be socially disadvantaged.

The Governors and staff also recognise that not all pupils who are socially disadvantaged are registered or qualify for free school meals. They therefore reserve the right to allocate the Pupil Premium funding to support any pupil or groups of pupils the school has legitimately identified as being socially disadvantaged. This is done to ensure inclusion and equality and to ensure that all children have the opportunity to succeed.

In times of budget cuts and reductions in funding we are continuously trying to make sure that we claim every penny we are entitled to so that we can provide the best possible learning opportunities for every child. You can help us with this by claiming if your child is eligible:

In March 2018 the Government announced that free school meals would only be available to children in KS2 whose families have a net income of £7400 or under, effective from 1 April 2018.

Prior to April 2018, children qualified for free school meals – and accordingly pupil premium – if you received any of the following benefits:

• Income support

• Income-based jobseekers’ allowance

• Income-related employment and support allowance

• Support under Part IV of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

• The guaranteed element of state pension credit

• Child tax credit, provided that you are not also entitled to working tax credit and have an annual gross income of £16,190 or less

These benefits have now been rolled into a single benefit, called Universal Credit. From April 2018, free school meals and pupil premium will only be allocated to pupils with a family income under £7400 (net) per year.

Since September 2014, all children in Reception and Years 1 and 2 have qualified for free school meals, regardless of their family income, but only the children who would qualify for free meals under the above income-based criteria will receive the pupil premium.

If your child qualifies for free school meals, it’s important that you let us know – even if they take a packed lunch – as this enables us to claim pupil premium.