Pupil Premium

Pupil Premium – How things work at William Hulme’s Grammar School 

Introduction The Pupil Premium is effectively and strategically deployed at William Hulme’s Grammar School to improve outcomes for pupils.  At the heart of our philosophy is to “bring out the best in everyone”.  

What is the Pupil Premium? 

The Pupil Premium was introduced in April 2011. The Government believes that the Pupil Premium, which is additional to main school funding, is the best way to address the current underlying inequalities between children eligible for free school meals (FSM) and their wealthier peers by ensuring that funding to tackle disadvantage reaches the pupils who need it most. 

The Pupil Premium is allocated to children from low-income families who are currently known to be eligible for Free School Meals and children who have been 'looked after' (in the care of the local authority - LAC) continuously for more than six months. To attract the pupil premium, pupils in either group must be aged 4 and over, and in year groups Reception to Year 11 in a mainstream school. 

• In most cases the Pupil Premium is allocated to schools and is clearly identifiable. It is for schools to decide how the Pupil Premium, allocated to schools per FSM and LAC pupil, is spent, since they are best placed to assess what additional provision should be made for the individual pupils within their responsibility.  It is not ring-fenced and schools are free to spend it as they wish.　 
• Schools will be held accountable for how they have used the additional funding to support pupils from low-income families. This will ensure that parents and others are made fully aware of the attainment of pupils covered by the Premium. 

Number of students eligible and percentage of school population for the last year 2011 - 2012 

Total number of school-age pupils in May 2012:

740 Number of eligible pupils: 178 FSM (24%), 17 LAC (2%) 

What projects did we run?

ü  Small class sizes at key stage 3.

ü  Additional adults in lessons to support pupils.  Teaching Assistants in the Primary Phase and Learning Support Assistants in the Secondary Phase provide high quality support that scaffolds the learning for key groups of students in lessons.

ü  Key Workers to support specific groups – LAC Learning Mentor. The LAC Learning Mentor works with other mentors in the school to provide an add-on and complementary service of daily quality pastoral and academic support to remove barriers to learning.

ü  Key Programmes - Great Blue Lions and Tailored Homework Clinics in the Secondary Phase.  The Great Blue Lions Programme is aimed at developing the whole child through a variety of student-led fundraising projects.  The Homework Clinics are staffed by 2 LSAs each evening and provide support for students beyond the class room.  These extended opportunities support the core activities within the curriculum.

ü  Mentoring / Counselling - On-site and available to remove barriers to learning.   The Mentoring Department offers a complementary and add-on service with a plethora of support programmes, enabling key groups of pupils to access their learning and develop socially and emotionally.  The team has extended its work to include the Impact Centre which provides high quality academic and pastoral support for students at risk of disaffection or exclusion.

ü  Careers and Guidance - An on-site Connexions Advisor provides early and targeted guidance. The school has purchased the services of an on-site Connexions Advisor who provides high quality guidance for students – examples of the work carried out include One-to-One Interviews, transition services to colleges, workshops and group work, including working with Primary Phase pupils.

ü  Partnerships - working with the Tutor Trust to offer bespoke One-to-One Tuition for both Primary and Secondary pupils.  The Tutor Trust works in partnership with the school to support pupils identified as a concern in the core subjects.  The programme runs for 10 1 hour sessions on-site, making it accessible for key groups of learners.

ü  Enrichment Opportunities - Where possible individual requests are supported in meeting the learning and social needs of pupils, for example: support with cultural and educational trips; opportunities to join our unique CCF and develop lifelong skills; purchase of Music lessons to nurture talents; Kindles and e-books to enhance confidence with reading and much more.Most importantly, along with these additional services, we offer outstanding and inclusive Teaching and Learning, and a safe and secure learning environment which enables all, including our Pupil Premium students, to achieve outstanding outcomes.   

What was the impact?

• 77% of all students in Year 11 gained 5A*-C with English and Mathematics
• 78% of students on FSM in Year 11 gained 5A*-C with English and Mathematics
• 75% of LAC and FSM students in Year 11 gained 5A*-C with English and Mathematics
• 76% of all students in Year 6 gained Level 4 or above in both English and Maths at KS2
• 71% of FSM students in Year 6 gained Level 4 or above in both English and Maths at KS2

Number of students eligible and percentage of school population this current academic year 2013 - 2014       

Total number of school-age pupils: 761        

Number of eligible pupils: 200 FSM (26%), 15 LAC (2%) 

What projects will run in 2012-2013? 

We will run all of the previous year's projects as they delivered outstanding outcomes for our pupils. In addition, we are continually striving to enhance our plethora of services and support packages to ensure the best futures for our young people.