Pupil Premium

Working to close the gap

WORKING TO CLOSE THE GAP

This area of the College website gives parents and other interested parties information about how the school is spending the Pupil Premium funding it receives and how it can support the achievement and progress of those pupils who are, or who have been previously, eligible for free school meals and/or who are Looked After Children or Previously Looked After Children. For further details on how Pupil Premium funding is being used please see the pupil premium strategy statement included in the downloads section below. This document also covers the spending of the Recovery Premium funding.

The Pupil Premium

The gap in Britain between the achievement of most and least affluent pupils is wide – leading to poor access for some of the less affluent children to good GCSE, A Level, Technical or Vocational qualifications, as well as to higher education, and consequently better paid employment. Therefore, schools have rightly been challenged to narrow this gap and improve outcomes for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The government has provided schools with additional money to spend on pupils who are eligible for free school meals (or who have been eligible at some point in the past six years) or who may be Looked After or Previously Looked After Children.

At Sawston Village College we are doing a number of things to improve performance with this group. Overseen by Erika Wagstaff, Assistant Principal, we are investing in increased support for literacy and numeracy, assertive and academic mentoring from mentors, Heads of Houses and outside agencies, reduced costs for extra-curricular activities, help with some educational materials and resources. National evidence also suggests that one of the most effective ways to spend Pupil Premium funding is on training for school staff, leading to high quality, inclusive teaching and learning approaches that should disproportionately benefit disadvantaged pupils. Pupil Premium pupils are also one of the key focus groups for the School Led and National Tutoring Programmes, which are both key initiatives introduced by the Department for Education to support pupils who may have missed learning during the coronavirus pandemic and going forward.

If you believe your child is eligible for the Pupil Premium and you want to know how the school can help with the cost of trips, visits, music lessons, uniform and other activities and equipment, please do not hesitate to contact Erika Wagstaff at ewagstaff@sawstonvc.org.

For more information on free school meals, please see here.