The Pupil Premium is allocated to children from low-income families who are currently known to be eligible for free school meals (FSM) in both mainstream and non-mainstream settings, have been eligible for FSM at any time during the past 6 years, and children who have been looked after continuously for more than six months.

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The Pupil Premium was introduced in April 2011, and paid to local authorities by means of a specific grant based on January school census figures for pupils registered as eligible for FSM in reception to Year 11. For looked after children the Pupil Premium was calculated using the Children looked after data returns (SSDA903).

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The Pupil Premium is also paid to academies via the Young Peoples’ Learning Agency.

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Local authorities are responsible for looked after children in care and will make payments to schools and academies where an eligible looked after child is on roll.

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Schools are free to spend the Pupil Premium as they see fit. However, they are held accountable for how they have used the additional funding to support pupils from low-income families. New measures have been included in the performance tables to capture the achievement of those deprived pupils covered by the Pupil Premium.  Since September 2012, we have been required to publish online information about we use the Premium. This ensures that parents and others are made fully aware of the attainment of pupils covered by the Premium.