Blogs

Pupil Premium: The elephant in the room

The Pupil Premium is the core strategy for closing the achievement gap and tackling the stark effects of poverty on educational outcomes. But there is an elephant in the room – not every eligible child gets the funding. Pete Henshaw joins the calls for this to change

The time is right for the government to act to make Pupil Premium registration automatic.

The Pupil Premium continues to be at the core of the government’s attempts to close the stubborn attainment and achievement gaps that exist between students from poor families and their wealthier peers.

Furthermore, our schools are increasingly being held to account based on their work to close the gaps in their cohorts and communities – to ultimately improve the progress that every child makes.

However, despite this, the weapon that lies at the heart of this strategy is still, to a degree, hit and miss. This is because the Pupil Premium relies on schools – most notably primary schools, but it is a key issue for secondary schools too – convincing their families to register.

Register now, read forever

Thank you for visiting SecEd and reading some of our content for professionals in secondary education. Register now for free to get unlimited access to all content.

What's included:

  • Unlimited access to news, best practice articles and podcast

  • New content and e-bulletins delivered straight to your inbox every Monday and Thursday

Register

Already have an account? Sign in here