Reform pupil premium to ‘level up’ urges charity

The pupil premium system should be reformed to provide higher rates of funding and reach more pupils, according to a major education charity. In a new report Rethinking pupil premium: a costed proposal for levelling up, the charity Teach First call for a series of reforms, including raising the early years pupil premium rate to align with the current primary school rate. Currently, children from disadvantaged background in early years settings are allocated less funding via the pupil premium compared to pupils in primary school. Teach First estimate that the cost of raising the early years pupil premium rate would be £130million per annum.

The charity is also calling for the government to restore pupil premium rates to 2015/16 levels in real terms (estimated cost £264million) and create a new pupil premium subcategory of ‘persistently disadvantaged’. The latter would increase the rate of funding by at least half for pupils who have been eligible for free school meals for 80 per cent of their school life (estimated cost £460million). The report’s fourth recommendation is to extend the pupil premium to include those aged between 16 and 19 in full-time education (estimated cost £290million).

Overall the proposals in the report would cost £1,144million per annum, and Teach First suggest that this money could come from the additional £4billion per annum that was recently announced by the government in the Autumn 2021 budget ‘to help improve education and level up opportunity for all’. The report argues: ‘There is no need for the government to design a new radical policy to meet its goal of levelling up our education system. Instead, it can be achieved effectively by increasing pupil premium rates and by modifying the eligibility criteria to provide further support to disadvantaged young people at every stage of their educational journey.’

Alongside the report Teach First commissioned a survey of more than 7000 teachers, carried out by the Teacher Tapp app, which found that more than two thirds (69 per cent) of respondents believed increased pupil premium would help their school secure better educational outcomes for disadvantaged pupils. The survey also found 74 per cent believed the government should invest in all schools, but weight additional funding towards schools serving disadvantaged communities as part of its ‘levelling up’ agenda. That figure rises to 87 per cent of teachers in the most disadvantaged schools, with a smaller majority (64 per cent) concurring among teachers at the most affluent schools.

Speaking about the proposals, Russell Hobby, CEO of Teach First, commented: ‘Inequality remains a significant feature of our education system – disadvantaged pupils simply do not get the same opportunity to succeed as their wealthier peers.  This has been the case for many years, but it has been exacerbated by the pandemic. Unless we act quickly to repair the damage, widened inequality will be built in for generations to come. We can’t level up our country until we level up our education system. We believe our proposals to increase and expand the pupil premium would make a lasting impact on the futures of millions of young people, giving targeted support to ensure we can give them the best possible chance to succeed.’

A Department for Education spokesperson said: ‘Schools receive pupil premium funding to support disadvantaged pupils, which is increasing to more than £2.6 billion in 2022-23 – the highest cash terms rate since this funding began. We have also identified 55 new Education Investment Areas to receive targeted support where educational outcomes are weakest, helping children from all backgrounds succeed at the very highest levels.’

Full report: https://www.teachfirst.org.uk/reports/pupil-premium