The Staff and Governors at Wallsend St Peter’s C of E VA Primary School are totally committed to ensuring that the provision is made which secures the learning and teaching opportunities that meet the needs of all the children so that all make maximum progress and reach their potential.
Our school welcomes and shares the government’s aim of tackling all forms of disadvantage and working tirelessly to ensure inclusion and equal access for all learners. We recognise that pupil premium funding is allocated to children in receipt of one of the following:
It is a means of addressing some of the issues associated with social disadvantage and in particular, in narrowing and hopefully eventually closing any gap in attainment where this exists. In making appropriate provision for this we are also acknowledged that not all pupils in receipt of free school meals are socially disadvantaged.
Pupil Premium is allocated to local authorities and schools with pupils on roll at the January census and has been eligible for any of the above at any time in the last six years. Each of these pupils will attract an allocated amount (£1,320 in 2017-18 for disadvantaged pupils and £1,900 for Looked-After children or with parents in the Armed Forces). Schools will have the freedom to spend the Premium, which is additional to the main schools block allocation, in a way they think will best support the raising of attainment for the most vulnerable pupils. The targeted and strategic use of pupil premium will support us in achieving our vision.
Principles
Provision
Wallsend St Peter’s is committed to excellence and the maintenance of high standards. We offer a wide range of provisions aimed at enabling all learners to enjoy and thrive in learning and achieve their best. The range of provisions the Governors consider making for this group would include:
Rationale for decisions about provision
The rationale for resource deployment is decided by the school based on the principles stated in our school improvement plan. These are:
Pupil Premium Funding will be used in the first instance to support the learning needs of children in receipt of free school meals, who need extra support, however, this provision may well also include other children who have been identified as ‘vulnerable’. Such decisions will be at the discretion of the Head Teacher.
The school’s leadership team, will monitor the attainment and progress of all pupils and decide which pupils need additional provision and what this provision will be. We use on-going and fixed point assessment to identify children’s learning needs and plan next steps teaching. A range of additional support may be provided that is felt to best meet the child’s needs at the time.
We always seek to provide outstanding quality first teaching for all pupils. Timely, precision teaching intervention is also used to maximize pupils’ progress and attainment. Where it is considered that there is a need for alternative provision from external providers that complements the school’s offer, the Head Teacher will agree this following discussion and advice from colleagues and other relevant sources.
Monitoring and Evaluating Provision
Once decided, additional provision is monitored session by session by those staff providing the support. Adaptations are then made as necessary. The overall effectiveness and impact is evaluated termly, usually through year group attainment and progress meetings or through the twice yearly Additional Needs Reviews held between the SENDCO and class teacher.
In evaluating effectiveness, a range of evidence is used including:
Reporting and Accountability
It will be the responsibility of the Head Teacher, or a delegated member of staff, to produce a report for the Governors every term on:
The report will also be published on the school’s website and parents/carers will be informed when this has been done via the School’s Newsletter.
Complaints and Appeals
It has been indicated by the DfE that it is intended that parents will be able to request access to their child’s share of the pupil premium. As the intervention program the school implements will be planned in advance and will account for all of the funding available to the school for these activities, funding will not, therefore, be available to parents to arrange their own chosen interventions. Our policy, therefore, is that this will not be allowed. The Head Teacher will meet with the parent and seek to come to an understanding and agreement about how funding will be best used for the individual.
Any allegations, complaints, disagreements or appeal regarding the deployment of Pupil Premium Funding will be through the Complaints Policy.
Review
This policy will be reviewed every 3 year as part of the school’s cycle. However, this can be sooner to reflect new information or changes as to what is required.