Pupil Premium Introduction

The Pupil Premium Grant (PPG) is additional funding given to schools and academies to:

• raise the attainment of disadvantaged pupils and close the gap between them and their peers.
• support children and young people with parents and carers in the regular armed forces.

First introduced in April 2011,  schools and academies receive funding based on the number of pupils who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last 6 years (Ever6).

School also receives additional funding for children who have previously been a Looked After Child (LAC) or whose parents and cares are in HM Armed Services as their education is often disrupted due to essential and frequent relocations.

The Department for Education recognise that school leaders are best placed to assess the needs of pupils within their schools, and subsequently utilise the funding to improve attainment, drawing on evidence of effective practice.

School leaders have the ability to decide how to spend the pupil premium, and evidence from the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) suggests that pupil premium spending is most effective when schools use a tiered approach, targeting spending across 3 areas: Teaching, Targeted Academic Support and Wider Approaches.

Spending the Pupil Premium Grant (PPG)

At The Mary Bassett Lower School allocation of PPG is carried out through a wide range of initiatives, projects and strategies under the tiered approach.

1. Teaching:

High quality teaching and learning

CPD opportunities for our staff team 

Curriculum development and enrichment

2. Targeted Academic Support

Specialist TA support within classrooms 

Enrichment opportunities within the curriculum

A broad range of intervention opportunities

3. Wider Approaches

Pastoral team 

Early intervention opportunities 

Wellbeing and SEMH support

Extra-curricular activities both before and after school (Income based PPG only)

Monitoring the impact of Pupil Premium Grant (PPG)

The Mary Bassett Lower School has a thorough system for monitoring the progress of all children in school and we regularly evaluate the impact of initiatives used to support the development of those who receive PPG. This monitoring includes:

• Termly Pupil Progress meetings with all teachers
• Reviewing the evidence of learning in books and folders
• Pupil voice
• Observations of learning and Learning walks
• Results and outcomes from specific interventions

Governor Monitoring

The Mary Bassett Lower School has two named Governors who are responsible for monitoring the school’s use of PPG. They support the Governing Body in ensuring the funds are appropriately allocated and spent. Governors also assist in monitoring the impact of initiatives and projects through school visits and reviewing pupil outcomes.