Pupil Premium
Pupil Premium is additional funding allocated to schools to support disadvantaged pupils and to help to close the attainment gap between them and their peers across the country.
Funding is allocated for pupils who are registered as eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) at any point in the last 6 years or are Looked After Children. Schools also receive funding for children who have been looked after continuously for more than six months and children of service personnel. The premium was introduced by the DfE in 2001 and is aimed at addressing the current underlying inequalities between children eligible for free school meals and those that are not by ensuring that funding to tackle disadvantage reaches the pupils who need it most.
Accountability
The government believes that head teachers and school leaders should decide how to use the pupil premium. They are held accountable for the decisions they make through: