What is Pupil Premium? 

Evidence shows that children from disadvantaged backgrounds generally face extra challenges in reaching their potential at school. Therefore, publicly funded schools in England receive additional funding (pupil premium) from the government to help overcome barriers to learning and improve the progress and outcomes of disadvantaged pupils. 

Funding is allocated for pupils who:

• receive Free School Meals (any child who has received FSM during past six years)
• have parents in the armed forces (Service Children)
• are ‘Looked After Children’ (LAC)
• are adopted from care.

Schools may spend their pupil premium funding on pupils who do not meet the eligibility criteria but need additional support. For example, pupils who:

· are in contact with a social worker

· used to be in contact with a social worker

· are acting as a carer

How does GCA allocate its funding?

Godmanchester Community Academy uses the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) Guide to the Pupil Premium. This includes the following 5 key principles of spending:

· Schools can make a difference in narrowing attainment gaps;

· Evidence-informed teachers and leaders must combine research findings with professional expertise to make decisions;

· Quality first teaching helps every child;

· Funding must support middle and higher attaining pupils – it must not solely focus on lower attaining pupils;

· Focussing on a small number of carefully chosen priorities is effective - less can be more.

In line with the EEF Guide, Godmanchester Community Academy has adopted a tiered approach to Pupil Premium spending. 

The three tiers are as follows: 

Quality first teaching: 

Ensuring an effective teacher is in front of every class, and that every teacher is supported to keep improving, is the key ingredient of a successful school and should rightly be the top priority for Pupil Premium spending. Spending on improving teaching might, but not exclusively, include professional development, training and support for early career teachers and, recruitment and retention.

Targeted academic support:

Evidence consistently shows the positive impact that targeted academic support can have, including on those who are not making good progress. Considering how classroom teachers and teaching assistants can provide targeted academic support, including how to link structured one-to-one or small group intervention to classroom teaching, is likely to be a key component of an effective Pupil Premium strategy.

Wider strategies:

Wider strategies relate to the most significant non-academic barriers to success in school, including attendance, behaviour and social and emotional support. While many barriers may be common across cohorts, it is also likely that the specific features of our growing community will affect spending in this category.

What does GCA hope to achieve through its funding? 

All pupils eligible for pupil premium funding will achieve in line with their peers.  This includes academic achievement and progress across the broad spectrum of subjects covered in the primary curriculum, including but not limited to reading, writing and mathematics as well as personal development including attendance and punctuality.

What are the main barriers to educational achievement for pupils eligible for Pupil Premium at GCA?

• Low attainment in reading, writing and maths 
• Poor language and communication skills
• Lack of funding for trips, visits and extra-curricular opportunities 
• Lack of parental engagement and support for home learning 
• Lack of focus and readiness to learn 
• Wellbeing concerns

In order to address these barriers, we will spend our Pupil Premium funding in the following ways:

• Annual schedule of CPD for all staff using evidence-based approaches and external speakers/conferences where possible.
• Daily 15 minutes ‘Read Together’ session using high quality, award-wining texts.
• Embed a system of immediate afternoon catch-up in all year groups through 1:1 or small group intervention.
• Establish small group vocabulary and reading interventions for disadvantaged pupils falling behind age-related expectations
• Inclusion team including a play therapist and pastoral support to address children’s social and emotional concerns and wellbeing
• School based family-worker to support families with acute need including attendance
• Financial support towards trips, visits, events and extra-curricular clubs

Impact will be measured in the following ways: 

• Progress and attainment data
• Teacher/TA observations
• Attendance data
• Book look and learning walks
• Pupil voice 

In the 2021-2022 academic year the school was allocated £81,950 (including recovery premium) 

In the current academic year (2022-2023) the funding allocation is £83,980

Please note, following the advice of the EEF, the strategy document below is a three-year plan.  This document will be reviewed annual and necessary updates will be made.