Pupil Premium

Introduction

The Pupil Premium was introduced in April 2011, and paid by means of a specific grant based on school census figures for children. It provides additional funding allocated to schools to support disadvantaged pupils. Funding applies to those registered as eligible for free school meals at any point in the last 6 years, as well as to support looked after children These funds are given to schools to help support these eligible pupils in ‘narrowing the attainment gap’ between themselves and their peers.

A premium has also been introduced for children whose parents are currently serving in the armed forces. This service premium is designed to address the emotional and social well-being of these children.

The Pupil Premium is additional to main school funding and it will be used by this school to address any underlying inequalities between children eligible by ensuring that funding reaches the children who need it most.

Closing the Gap

Lark Hall is committed to narrowing any identified gaps in attainment between children. We are totally transparent in how we use the Pupil Premium funding to enable us to tailor provision to meet individual need through the use of validated intervention programmes that can offer sustained and accelerated progress for our children.

The barriers and challenges disadvantaged children face at Lark Hall Primary School are complex and varied – there is no single difficulty faced by all. We are a larger than average sized primary school, with a vibrant and diverse school community. The largest group of children are black African, and we have a large group of Portuguese and Black Caribbean children, as well as a very small percentage of White British children.

Three quarters of the school speak a first language other than English at home. Just under half the children are eligible for Free School Meals and the school is in the top quintile for deprivation. There are a high proportion of children in the mainstream school with an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP) as well as a high proportion with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). All of our children in Woodlark House Autism Resource Base have a EHCP.

In order to help disadvantaged pupils who are in receipt of the Pupil Premium to make excellent progress in their learning, have good attendance rates, and access a range of opportunities to develop socially and emotionally, we have put in place a range of strategies, which can be viewed within this section of the website.

At Larkhall, we expect all those children in receipt of Pupil Premium to:
• make at least expected progress academically in relation to their targets;
• reach an acceptable level of attendance and lateness;
• be able to cope with the social, emotional and behavioural expectations at school.

The outcomes for the children eligible for the Pupil Premium are measured in relation to their academic achievement and in particular the end of key stage 2 results, children’s attendance and lateness. We also use case studies to make more holistic evaluations of the impact of our provision that can take better account of the qualitative information we have available.

For our most recent Pupil Premium Statement, please download it with this link: