Agenda item

Pupil Premium

[Neil Jarman, School Improvement Advisor, to present report]

Minutes:

Neil Jarman, School Improvement Adviser – Primary, presented a briefing paper on pupil premium funding and how the money it is being used to raise the attainment of disadvantaged pupils of all abilities and close the gaps with their more affluent peers.

 

The School Improvement Adviser commented that pupil premium funding represents a considerable sum that schools can use to support the learning of children.  The School Improvement Adviser commented that the spending of the pupil premium funding is at the discretion of the Head teacher and the school governing body.

 

The School Improvement Adviser commented of the effective work done by Elston Hall and St Stephen’s Primary schools. The panel were advised that both schools had received national recognition about how they were using funding from pupil premium creatively to improve educational attainment rates. The School Improvement Adviser advised the panel the education service recognises that some children have limited life experiences and the pupil premium has been used by some schools to support their speech and writing skills and on-going learning.

 

The School Improvement Adviser commented on the important role of parents in supporting the learning of disadvantaged children and the highlighted the benefits of schools using pupil premium in a targeted way.  A reference was made to Bushbury Primary School buying clocks for 100 children aged 6-7 and as a result attendance and punctuality has improved. In another example, a school has used funding to recruit lunchtime supervisors to help create a more positive and supportive environment, which all contributes to getting children ready to learn.

 

The School Improvement Adviser gave other examples of how schools have used the pupil premium to give children a broader life experience based on an assessment of their needs.

 

The School Improvement Adviser commented that pupil premium funding is about pooling resources to bring about benefits to a wider group of children and improve educational attainment levels.

 

The panel commented on the importance of local schools being encouraged to share examples of good practice about how the pupil premium could be used. The panel also commented on the importance of involving children in decisions about how pupil premium could be used to support their learning and development. The School Improvement Adviser commented on the important role of the school governing body to review the effectiveness of how pupil premium funding is being used. There is an expectation from the service that a senior teacher at the school and a nominated governor would review the use pupil premium. The School Improvement Adviser commented there is further information on the use of pupil premium by Ofsted and schools will be asked to evidence how they are using the fund to support the learning of disadvantaged children.

 

The School Improvement Adviser commented that schools are encouraged to work collaboratively.

 

The panel welcomed the report and the comments on the use of pupil premium. The panel also welcomed that within schools there is a designated school teacher and school governor with special responsibility to review the impact of pupil premium funding. The School Improvement Adviser explained that the use of pupil premium will depend on the make-up of the school, but it should support the delivery of the school improvement plan.

 

The panel queried the continued funding of pupil premium in the future.  The School Improvement Adviser explained that the current award is part of a four year settlement and the expectation is that it will continue into the future. The award is treated as a separate budget. The panel discussed the risk of pupil premium funding being used to make up shortfalls in other school budgets rather. The School Improvement Adviser explained that pupil premium money should be spent on meeting the educational needs of disadvantaged children and the service will continue to challenge and monitor schools about how they are using the budget. Furthermore, Ofsted inspectors will continue to monitor how schools are using the budget.

 

A report is presented by Ofsted to Parliament on the progress on the use by schools of pupil premium and it is an integral part of the inspection process. The School Improvement Adviser added that during an inspection they will talk to groups of disadvantaged children as part of the evidence used to evaluate the performance of a school and their use of pupil premium.

 

The panel welcomed the report and the briefing on the work being done to monitor the use of pupil premium funding

 

Resolved:

            The panel agreed to receive a report in six months on progress, examples of local good practice, and sharing in good practice in how schools are using pupil premium funding to support the educational needs of disadvantaged children.

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