Pupil Premium & Free School Meals

What is Pupil Premium? 

The Government provides funds to schools to help children from families with lower income, or in challenging situations. This funding is called Pupil Premium.

Pupil Premium is additional to main school funding; evidence suggests that this is the best way to address the current underlying inequalities between children by ensuring that funding to tackle disadvantaged pupils reaches the children who need it the most.

Schools decide how the Pupil Premium is spent, since they are best placed to assess what additional provision should be made for the individual pupils within their responsibility. All schools are held accountable for how they have used the additional funding to support children from disadvantaged families: read more on the Department for Education website.

We use a range of intervention strategies to provide children with the additional support and challenge that they need in order to accelerate progress and, for some children, to eliminate barriers to learning so they are equipped with the tools, skills and experience they need to reach age related expectations and as they move through the school.

Pupil Premium and Recovery Premium funding for 2023-24

54% of children at Watling Park School are eligible for free school meals or are entitled to the Pupil Premium Grant. This has risen by 6% over the last three years.

We have planned our spending carefully for the academic year 2023-24 to ensure that it will be spent to maximum effect, with the help of an advisor who takes responsibility for Pupil Premium. We have taken the following into consideration when allocating expenditure:

• Ensuring that spending is directly linked to closing gaps in attainment
• Making use of our attainment and progress data to allocate effective interventions, including the allocation of additional adults
• Ensuring that we effectively evaluate the impact of challenge and support where necessary
• Ensuring that support is allocated that enables wellbeing and self-esteem that, in turn, facilitates effective learning and progress
• Ensuring that children who are identified as more able and who have entitlement to pupil premium funding are challenged and supported

See our Action Plan for the 2023/24 School Pupil Premium Strategy. This includes the recovery premium fund spending and the impact report for 2022-23 pupil premium spending.

Pupil Premium & Free School Meals

Our office team will be able to advise and help you with the application process. Please do ask at reception for guidance which will be given discreetly and in confidence. 

It is really important that families complete our school's registration form because a child may be eligible for extra funding.

Free School Meals: are you eligible?

All pupils in Reception and Years 1-2 receive free school meals. These are known as "universal free school meals". If your child is in Years 3-6, they could be eligible for free school meals if you receive any of these benefits:

• Income support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• The guaranteed element of Pension Credit
• Child Tax Credit (provided you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190)
• Working Tax Credit run-on - paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
• Universal Credit - if you apply on or after 1 April 2018 your household income must be less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including any benefits you get)

Children who get paid these benefits directly (instead of through a parent or guardian) can also get free school meals. Your child may also get free school meals if you get any of these benefits, and your child is both:

• younger than the compulsory age for starting school
• in full-time education.

Check your eligibility if you believe that your child(ren) are eligible for free school meals.

How to apply

1. Registering is quick and easy, you can apply online. If you are eligible, the school will be notified within 5 working days. Only one parent needs to be eligible for a child to receive free school meals.
2. Alternatively, please come to the office (Barnet residents only) and we will help you with the application process. You will need to provide your national insurance number and date of birth.
3. If you have any problems with applying for this support, contact our school office on 0208 8353 4249 or office@watlingparkschool.org.uk

The application is entirely confidential. No one will know you have registered and it will not affect any other benefits you are claiming. You can find out more information by clicking this link Free school meals | Barnet Council.