Pupil Premium

Total Pupil Premium Allocation

Allocation for 2020-2021 = £352,390

Allocation for 2021-2022 = £380,150

Allocation for 2022-2023 = £395,560

Research

There is much research pertaining to Pupil Premium Funding in the public domain.  The Education Endowment Foundation and The Sutton Trust research are two. Professor John Hattie’s ‘Visible Learning’ is another. We have focused our pupil premium funding on those strategies which demonstrate consistent outstanding progress in pupils’ achievement. Primarily, this is high quality teaching allied to a challenging curriculum and an emphasis on building resilient, independent learners.

Effective Teaching and Learning strategies

Effective teaching and learning strategies are essential and have a vital impact in raising standards, for all groups of pupils including those in receipt of pupil premium funding. We implement and utilise those aspects of teaching and learning which ensure impact. These include:

1. Formative assessment strategies: Knowing where pupils are in their learning is essential if we are to move them forward. Professional development for all staff is centred around development of formative assessment in order to shape the curriculum. Effective CPD in this area for all staff supports pupil learning.
2. Curriculum design: Our curriculum is ambitious for all pupils. Designing, implementing and assessing the impact of the curriculum takes time and skill and development over time of both staff and pupils. Our staff lead their subject across school and ensure that the curriculum reflects formative assessment strategies and that the impact is delivered with  ambitious intentions.
3. Quality first teaching; the vast majority of our learning takes place inside the classroom; however, interventions are necessary and are delivered by skilled individuals utilising formative and summative assessments. These may be speech and language trained support assistants, or experienced learning support assistants. Interventions strategies are utilised in order to ensure children are able to access our ambitious curriculum
4. Developing questioning strategies for all groups of pupils. Key questioning around multi objective lessons leads to pupils accessing, developing and building on learning.
5. A curriculum planned for spaced learning. Pupils encounter topics and associated objectives frequently and often, and are provided with tasks which ensure they apply those skills on a regular basis. Lessons are designed to build on existing learning and develop opportunities to apply existing knowledge, develop new skills and apply them in a wide variety of situations. This curriculum results in rapid gains for all groups of pupils, including those in receipt of the pupil premium.
6. Effective assessment for learning is paramount to ensuring children in receipt of pupil premium make rapid gains in their learning. Effective assessment for learning includes the following:-

1. Identifying the standards learners are achieving
2. Planning appropriate steps to move them forward at pace
3. Planning and delivery of a suitable curriculum which is based on what children are currently able to do and what their potential learning could be
4. Providing appropriate feedback to ensure children develop awareness around the next steps in their learning based around teachers receiving appropriate feedback on children’s progress and amending the planning accordingly

John Hattie in his visible learning research identifies five elements of successful assessment for learning which demonstrate maximum gains for pupils. These include:

1. Development of systems of self-assessment
2. Use of clear success criteria understood by learners
3. Task focused feedback as opposed to ego focused feedback
4. Teaching objectives often allied to application of learning
5. Good use of Formative assessment
6. Teachers working collaboratively

Therefore the vast majority of CPD, the focus of support and lesson observations focus on those things which ensure the maximum difference for children in receipt of the pupil premium. Progress is evaluated on a regular basis, through class teachers, middle leaders and subject leads. Gaps are identified regularly through good assessment procedures. The curriculum is amended accordingly. Each Year group has a team leader whose main focus is teaching and learning and leading of assessment for learning within the year group. This has resulted in a curriculum which is ambitious, but allows movement forwards and backwards, is based around or above National expectations, and results in rapid gains across the school. Part of the monies have been used to support external consultants who can add to the Assessment for Learning practice within the school.

Teachers working collaboratively is recognised both by the Sutton trust and John Hattie as having benefits to the standards pupils achieve.  Our current structure of three-form entry allows us to utilise monies to ensure each year group is released for PPA at the same time. Collaborative learning ensures teachers are comfortable with rigorous challenge regularly to ensure their curriculum choices challenge pupils and are based on sound assessment for learning.

1. Learning Support Assistants employed in the classroom are done so with the strategies of a), b) and c) closely aligned to them. They are employed to specifically support with the learning and to employ the strategies of assessment for learning in order to maximize pupil outcomes. They receive appropriate CPD to this effect, both formally and within the classroom. The result is they often support pupils in receipt of the pupil premium who go on to make rapid gains in their learning. The school employs a large body of LSAs who receive regular training to support them in ensuring pupils progress in learning. Pupil premium funding has supported us to enact this across school
2. The school reports to the governing body on a regular basis with regard to the pupil premium children. Regular evaluation processes ensure all staff are aware of those children in receipt of pupil premium funding and plan accordingly. Relevant reporting to the governing body is completed and ensures robust systems of accountability. Yearly self-assessment reports are produced by team leaders and subject leaders – meetings are held with nominated governors and the school’s external adviser in order to hold senior and middle leaders responsible for progress of pupils, including those in receipt of the pupil premium.

Speech and Language

The school employs a speech and language therapist for three days per week to work with children across the school, right from the moment they start and plan individual programmes of support for individuals and groups. Approximately thirty children in each of Foundation Stage, Year 1 and year 2 access this support, which is then utilised in classrooms through formative assessment to ensure children make rapid progress.

The school received £49,040 for the catch up premium. These funds were used to enhance our speech and language provision by allowing us to purchase extra provision from a qualified speech and language therapist, and also had enabled the school to employ a speech and language support worker specifically to support pupils in the Early years with language development and acquisition.

Reading Curriculum

We continually evaluate our reading curriculum based upon formative assessment and the needs of the children. This has, and continues to require significant investment in order that reading material is progressive, phonetically decodable, rich in progressive development, diversity and covers a wide range of themes.

Continuous assessing of children’s needs ensures matched literature for phonics and reading development. This is expensive and is supported via the pupil premium.

Curriculum Enrichment

Developing cultural capital is key to ensuring our children develop an understanding of the society in which they live and provides experiences to support understanding of reading material. Research demonstrates that wider cultural capital supports children to interpret a variety of texts. Pupil premium supports development of cultural capital, which is undertaken in relation to an ambitious curriculum offer.

The impact of the above is significant gains for all groups of pupils, including those in receipt of the pupil premium. Outcomes for learners are consistently well above National Averages and have resulted in outstanding progress consistently and over time.

Pupil Premium Strategy Statement

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