This Policy is the revised School Age and the Early Years Pupil Premium Plus Policy for Doncaster Looked After Children [LAC] for 2016/17

It takes account of the comments made by colleagues in the LA over the last financial period. All interested parties are encouraged to comment on the related systems and processes via

The Early Years and School Age Pupil Premium Plus for Looked After Children [LAC]

The Pupil Premium is a payment made by the government to help raise the attainment of disadvantaged pupils and close the gap with their peers. The Pupil Premium Plus is the funding for Looked After Children.

The conditions of grant for the pupil premium plus arrangements and additional information are published on the Department’s website and can be found here:

.uk/government/publ i cations/pupil-premium-grant-2014-to-2015-conditions-of-grant

.uk/pupil-premium-information-for-schools-and-alternative-provision-settings

The Early Years Pupil Premium Plus ( PPP ) for children taking up the free ear ly education entitlement for 3 or 4 year-olds.

This funding is available to all early years providers, including childminders, who receive funding for early years provision e.g. PVI settings and school nurseries. The Early Years PPP is currently 53 pence per hour. The overall amount, per eligible child who takes up the full 570 hours, is ￡302.10.

Pupil Premium Plus (PPP) for school aged LAC

The overall amount of school aged PPP is based on the numbers of LAC aged 4-15, in the previous financial year, with a mid-year revision to account for additional children. It amounts to a notional ￡1900 per child from the first day of entry into care.

As in 2015-16 the overall grant is calculated on a per capita basis.

There is no requirement for an authority to pass a set amount of funding onto the school or setting given that looked after children and young people have differing levels of need at different stages of being in care. Instead the money must be managed by the Virtual School to be used to improve outcomes as identified in the Personal Education Plan (PEP) in consultation with the Designated Teacher or Practitioner.

This is a child needs driven model, managed through high quality PEPs

There is an increasing expectation of high levels of accountability:

The Virtual Head (VSH) is responsible for making sure arrangements are in place for allocating the pupil premium plus funding to the benefit of looked-after children. They are also responsible for ensuring that schools, non-mainstream settings and early years providers, in and out of the Local Authority, are accountable for the use and impact of the PPP funding for looked-after children. The funding should be used to help meet the needs identified in the children’s individual personal education plans (PEPs) and is ‘linked to raising achievement for looked after children’ .

Ofsted’s framework for the inspection of services for looked-after children requires inspectors to ask the VSH for an annual report. The report should include:

? details of how the pupil premium and EYPP for looked-after children has been managed.

? evidence of how the spending of the premiums has supported the achievement of the children looked after by the local authority

In Doncaster, the VS Governing Body and ‘Corporate Parenting Board’ will monitor the use and impact of PPP via the annual report. This will also be part of the accountability process.

The S etting or S chool:

‘ Settings and Schools are accountable for the educational attainment and progress of all disadvantaged pupils’ .

Ofsted Inspectors will ask about any differences made to the learning and progress of pupils eligible for the PPP, as shown by performance data and inspection evidence. They will look at the progress of pupils who are eligible for the PPP since joining the school. They will look at how well school leaders are monitoring and evaluating the impact of their PPP spending, in particular on narrowing the gap for Looked After Children who are currently on roll in the school or setting – separate to other children receiving Pupil Premium.

The central purpose for the use of PPP will be to close the attainment gap, however, Carers, Parents and Social Workers should be part of the meaningful discussions on what might best support each child to make progress.

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The Early Years and School Pupil Premium Plus

Doncaster Council and Virtual School Head are ‘corporate parents’ for LAC, so the question ‘would this be good enough for my child?’ is a central one in making decisions and evaluating the effectiveness of the use of Pupil Premium Plus.

A portion of the funding is distributed and additional funding distributed according to the needs of the child (within the limits of the overall budget for all Doncaster’s children in care).

There will be a high level of accountability in terms of how allocated funding is used to close the gap and this should be detailed and evidenced in Personal Education Plans (PEPs). The latter should evidence need and impact based on -

a) a straightforward question - “is the child making at least expected or good progress?” and,

b) a cost/ impact based question on the use of the PPP.

Allocation Systems

The Early Years Pupil Premium Plus for PVI settings, childminders and school nurseries

1. The funding will be distributed every term pro-rata for each eligible child according to the hours received and after each ‘headcount’.

2a. Settings will receive their funding via the Early Years Service.

2b. Schools with a nursery will receive their funding from the LA finance dept. via

the C&YPinE Service.

3. The September 2015 Early Years Funding Agreement for PVI settings will tie the EYPPP with the ￡200 LAC child supplement.

4. The EY Personal Education Plan will replace the previous documentation (Looked After Child Proforma) normally requested.

5. The criterion for distribution of the EYPPP is the same as for schools – the PEP should demonstrate a link between assessed need, the funding and impact to support the child to make progress.

6. Funding will not be retained by the LA – all will be distributed to settings assuming the PEP fits the criteria identified above.

Schools , Academies, alternative provision:

1. All children who are looked after in Reception to Year 11, who are of compulsory school age are eligible for Pupil Premium Plus.

2. If a child enters care during the year, a proportion of Pupil Premium Plus will be available from the day the child enters care

3. Funding for Doncaster children who are looked after will be allocated on a bi - annual basis, dependent on the needs of the child with evidence of impact demonstrated through the termly PEP review.

4. In 2016/17 all schools will receive a first instalment of ￡800 in the summer term (or holiday period) of 2016 to ensure it is received at least in preparation for the beginning of the academic term and so that ‘early’ interventions can be planned.

5. Schools will be expected to cost the resources against the allocated funding and detail this on the target setting proforma within the PEP documentation.

6. Termly PEP reviews will provide evidence of spend and impact for audit purposes and on the child’s learning

7. The second instalment of ￡800 will be received by schools approximately 3 - 4 months after the first instalment when the PEP targets are reviewed and updated, demonstrate robust planning and the impact of the previous funding.

8. The funding will be withheld until this is completed.

9. The second instalment may be more dependent on uptake throughout the year.

10. Designated Teachers can request additional funding – see Additional Funding below.

High cost independent specialist school or residential placement with education on site The PPP will be withheld where a child is placed in these provisions expecting that all of the young person's educational needs will be met through the cost of the placement without the need for PPP as part of the contractual agreement. However, the social worker, in discussion with the school, may wish to apply for PPP to promote engagement with learning above that which the school would ordinarily provide e.g. guitar lessons.

￡3 00 of the PPP will be retained centrally . (This is a reduction on the previous year as a direct result of the increased evidencing of timely, appropriate interventions to meet the child’s need).

The Local Authority will utilise the retained budget for a range of purposes informed by knowledge of the needs of CLA and as directed by the data shared by schools for individuals and groups and at LA level.

For example, in 2014/15 funding was used to build the capacity of staff on the emotional wellbeing of CLA and settling the child to learn through training on attachment. The project commenced as a strategy to reduce the high % Fixed Term Exclusion trend for Doncaster CLA and improve absence figures. The positive impact of this work is already evident in improved outcomes some schools across the LA.

Individual children and key year groups were targeted for support for interim tuition to accelerate progress. In 2016/17 some funding will support a pilot to reduce the % Fixed Term Exclusions and increase capacity of staff in the pilot, to support children experiencing high anxiety as a result of trauma, in the Secondary Phase.

If there is a projected under-spend toward the end of the year (March) the money will be given to schools for those children in most need to target underachievement (pending a quality PEP).

Additional funding

Specific year groups will be targeted for additional funding by the VS. This will be informed by data as well as the needs of the child.

Individual or groups of schools can bid for additional funding to support CLA if a need is identified through data tracking and the projected or intended impact identified. After discussion with the Virtual School, in relation to the cost/impact of previous spending, additional funding can be applied for by completion of the Additional Pupil Premium form. (See Attachment)

Use of the Pupil Premium Plus

Pupil Premium Plus must be used to improve outcomes in:

? Academic achievement/progress

? Attendance

? Inclusion

? Social skills

? Transition

Examples of use for Early Years could include:

? Resources to enhance provision

? Staff training and action based research

? Resources to support home learning e.g. book bags; training for carers; ‘What to expect when’ resources

? Revision guides

Examples of use for schools could include:

? IT equipment and specific software programmes, e.g. digital camera, laptop, IPad for the child

? Academic mentoring/youth mentor sessions

? Kindle for home use

? Resources for home use

? Rewards/ incentives - vouchers

? Subscription to a monthly magazine (to boost reading)

? Targeted interventions including 1:1 tuition, provision of HLTA, additional teaching staff, small group tuition.

? Booster classes

? Allocation of a key person

? Social skills/emotional well-being activities

? Individualised learning pathways e.g. one day work experience placement or a college placement (to ensure 25 hours full time provision)

? After school, holiday sessions (study support)

Further examples of uses are available on:

https://educaitonalendowmentfoundation.org.uk

* Promoting the education of looked after children. Statutory guidance for local authorities. DFE. July 2014

In addition and through a separate process , ￡1,900 is passed directly to schools for each pupil who has left local-authority care because of 1 of the following:

? adoption

? a special guardianship order

? a child arrangements order

? a residence order

If a pupil has been registered as eligible for free school meals and has also left local-authority care for any of the reasons above, they attract the ￡1,900 rate.

DoncasterMBC Pupil Premium Plus 201617