Pupil Premium
What is Pupil Premium Funding?
This is funding provided to all schools to raise achievement levels of students from low income families. The term "disadvantaged" is often used alongside or instead of Pupil Premium.
Funding is paid to the school according to the number of students who:
- Are, or have at any point in the in the last six years, been receiving free school meals
- Are looked after children (adopted or children in care)
- Are children of Armed Forces Service personnel (service pupil premium)
Although the school is funded an amount per eligible student, the Department for Education recognises that this funding should support the academic achievement of all pupil premium students as a whole, and so gives the responsibility to the school to use the money as it sees fit.
Activities Supported by Pupil Premium Funding
The school monitors the progress of all students as part of the regular assessment and data cycle used across all subject areas. This identifies where interventions are required to provide students with additional support to ensure they can achieve as well as possible. Progress in our school can be seen academically, emotionally and socially and pupil premium funding contributes to a variety of measures to support all students’ progress in these areas. This support ranges from academic support and access to curriculum enrichment opportunities, to specialised services that support mental health and wellbeing.
The main barriers to Educational Achievement at Hobart for some of our disadvantaged children are:
- The rural location and it's impact on student access to additional activities, revision and support services are seen as a possible barrier for some Hobart students. We are using a model of in school provision, where possible, to reduce this impact, so students can access additional support and opportunities.
- Attendance for some of our Pupils Premium Students is a barrier to learning. The school Attendance officer, Assistant Head (Guidance) and Guidance/Pastoral Team are working hard to improve attendance of Pupil Premium students where needed.
- Attainment, attitudes to learning and engagement by students and their families is also seen as a possible barrier for some Pupil Premium students. We have introduced attitudes for learning measures across the school to monitor this, held meetings for families and have changed our reporting so all students and families are clear on what positive attitudes are desired in school to enhance learning and progress. This is supported by work in the Guidance Team, tutors and mentors.
- Aspiration can also be linked to all three barriers identified above. We are using a range of strategies to raise attainment and aspiration across the school and Pupil Premium students are a key focus group.
As we continue to improve our Pupil Premium strategies, one of our recent developments is to use a process of Individual pupil profiling. This will help us to identify specific barriers to learning experienced by individual Pupil Premium students and help us to target more specific individualised support.
Our main philosophy is that the first wave of impactful support and intervention starts within the classroom, and we are continuing to strive to offer quality first teaching, including high levels of feedback to Pupil Premium students. This is being monitored as part of our lesson observations and work scrutiny/review processes. Staff are being supported to develop practice as part of our career professional development programmes, which underpin our sustained focus on enhancing teaching and learning.
Ultimately, the various strategies that we employ aim t reduce any gaps between Pupil Premium students and their peers, and to provide the foundations to future successes. Our Pupil Premium strategy document outlines the ways in which we will use this funding both over the year ahead and in the longer term. You can view a copy of our strategy through the link below:
