The pupil premium is additional funding for publicly funded schools in England to raise the attainment of disadvantaged pupils of all abilities and to close the gaps between them and their peers.

Some Background information from the Department for Education

• The Government believes that the Pupil Premium Grant is the best way to address the current underlying inequalities between children eligible for free school meals (FSM) and their  peers by ensuring that funding to tackle disadvantage reaches the pupils who need it most.

• In most cases the Pupil Premium Grant is allocated to low-income families who are currently known to be eligible for FSM in both mainstream and non-mainstream settings and children who have been looked after continuously for more than six months.

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

• The Government decided that eligibility for the Pupil Premium Grant in 2012-13 was extended to pupils who have been eligible for free school meals (FSM) at any point in the last 6 years ( Forever6 ). As a group, children who have been eligible for FSM at any point in time have consistently lower educational attainment than those who have never been eligible for FSM.

• It is for schools to decide how the Pupil Premium funding, allocated to schools per FSM pupil, is spent, since they are best placed to assess what additional provision should be made for the individual pupils within their responsibility. However schools are held accountable for how they have used the additional funding to support pupils from low-income families.

Service Premium

In 2014 a grant introduced for children whose parents are currently serving in the armed services. This service premium is designed to address the emotional and social well-being of these pupils.

Government performance tables highlight the achievement of those disadvantaged pupils covered by the Pupil Premium. There is a requirement that schools publish the progress and attainment of the disadvantaged pupils online and how they have used the Premium. This is to ensure that parents and others are made fully aware of the progress and attainment of pupils covered by the Premium.

At Little Hoole we are committed to all children feeling like they are 'Ten Feet Tall' and the Pupil Premium Grant helps us to achieve this. Please read the information below which gives details of our Pupil Premium Grant and how we allocate the funding.