Pupil premium (PP) grant provides additional funding for state-funded schools in England to raise the educational attainment of disadvantaged pupils. Schools and local authorities must follow the terms and conditions set out in the pupil premium conditions of grant.

1. Introduction

The Secretary of State for Education lays down the following terms and conditions on which assistance is given in relation to pupil premium (PP) grant payable to academies (including free schools and alternative provision (AP) academies) for the financial year beginning 1 April 2024.

The following terms and conditions apply to single and multi-academy trusts (MATs).

PP grant rates and detailed eligibility criteria for the financial year 2024 to 2025 are set out in the PP grant technical note.

PP grant funding is allocated to academies for 2 separate objectives:

• raising the educational attainment of disadvantaged pupils of all abilities to help them reach their potential
• providing support for children and young people with parents in the regular armed forces

2. Funding criteria

There are different funding criteria for each objective set out above.

2.1 Raising the educational attainment of disadvantaged pupils

PP grant is allocated to academies based on the number of pupils in year groups reception to year 11, who are:

• recorded as eligible for free school meals (FSM) or have been recorded as eligible in the past 6 years (FSM Ever 6)
• previously looked-after children (PLAC): pupils who were looked after by a local authority or other state care immediately before being adopted, or who left local authority or other state care on a special guardianship order or child arrangements order (previously known as a residence order). This includes children adopted from state care or equivalent from outside England and Wales

PP grant is also allocated to local authorities based on the number of:

• looked-after children (LAC) supported by the authority, including those who attend academies. LAC are defined in the Children Act 1989 as those who are in the care of, or provided with accommodation by, an English local authority. It is for the local authority to decide how much of this funding to pass on to the child’s academy

The portion of PP grant funding for LAC and PLAC pupils is often referred to as ‘pupil premium plus’ (PP+).

2.2 Providing support for children and young people with parents in the regular armed forces

The portion of PP grant for children and young people with parents in the regular armed forces is referred to as service pupil premium (SPP). It has been combined into PP payments to make it easier for schools to manage their spending, but the group of pupils that SPP is intended to support are not necessarily from financially disadvantaged backgrounds.

SPP is allocated to academies based on the number of pupils who meet the following criteria:

Pupils are eligible if they meet the following 2 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
• they have been registered as a ‘service child’ on any school census in the past 6 years

They would also be eligible if:

• one of their parents died whilst serving in the armed forces and the pupil receives a pension under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme or the War Pensions Scheme

3. Permitted use of PP grant

PP grant must be spent to deliver the objectives and support eligible pupil cohorts as described in sections 2.1 and 2.2 above.

The grant can be spent:

• for the benefit of eligible pupils registered at the academy who meet the funding criteria
• for the benefit of pupils who meet the funding criteria and are registered at other state funded schools - for example, when hosting summer schools which welcome pupils from other schools
• on community services whose provision furthers the benefit of eligible pupils at the academy

Academies do not have to spend PP so that it solely benefits pupils who meet the funding criteria. PP can be used to support other pupils with identified needs, such as those who have or have had a social worker, or who act as a carer. It can also be used for whole class interventions which will also benefit non-disadvantaged pupils.

In the financial year 24/25 the school will receive £54,760 in Pupil Premium funding.  The attached strategy provides more information relating to specific spending. 

Early Years Pupil Premium

Early years providers are any organisation that offers education for children aged under 5, including nurseries and childminders. They’re responsible for:

• identifying which of the children in their care may be eligible for the EYPP
• passing that information on to their local authority

We have attached a form for you to complete so that we can check if you are eligible for EYPP.