AGENDA ITEM 8
BOROUGH OF POOLE
POOLE SCHOOL’S FORUM
25 JUNE 2014
POOLE’S VIRTUAL SCHOOL FOR LOOKED AFTER CHILDREN
PART OF THE PUBLISHED FORWARD PLAN: YES
STATUS: Service Delivery Information
1.PURPOSE
1.1To inform School’s Forum of proposed arrangements for pupil premium allocation for looked-after children during the financial year 2014-2015 with particular regard to:
- New flexibility in how pupil premium funding for looked-after children can be allocated with a requirement for the Virtual School Headteacher to manage the funding in order to maximise the benefits to looked-after children
- New link between funding allocation and a high-quality Personal Education Plan with a greater role for the Virtual School Headteacher in working with schools to promote the educational achievement of looked-after children
2. DECISION REQUIRED
2.1 To note the changes to pupil premium allocation for looked-after children and the implications of the increased accountability of the Headteacher of the Virtual School for use of the funding.
3.BACKGROUND INFORMATION
3.1The Children and Families Act 2014 requires all local authorities to have someone (called the virtual school head) who will carry out the duty of the authority to promote the educational achievement of the children it looks after.
3.2 The new Framework and evaluation schedule for the inspection of services for
children in need of help and protection, children looked after and care leavers (single inspection framework) and reviews of Local Safeguarding Children Boards was published in September 2013. The documents were updated in April 2014.The good grade descriptor identifies that ‘the local authority maintains accurate and up-to-date information about how looked after children are progressing at school and takes urgent and individual action when they are not achieving well’. This is attached as a web link (Annex A).
3.3In February 2014 the new Pupil Premium 2014 to 2015 Conditions of Grant were published. This is attached as a web link(Annex B).
3.4There are three main changes:
1) Looked after children attract a pupil premium of £1900, more than double the amount they attracted in 2013-14.
2) The cohort of looked after children who attract the pupil premium is bigger and includes children looked after from the first day of care rather than, as previously, only those who had been looked after for six months or more.
3) For 2014-15 the pupil premium for looked after children must be managed by the virtual school head in the authority that looks after them.
Unlike in previous years, there is no requirement for an authority to pass the funding onto the school where the child is on roll to contribute towards meeting the needs identified in their Personal Education Plan. The presumption, however, is that funding is passed to the school and this is strongly encouraged.
3.5In March 2014 the Department for Education published the document: ‘Pupil Premium and the role of the Virtual School Head 2014-15 frequently asked questions’. This is attached as Annex C. The main points are as follows:
3.5.1Ministers want Virtual School Headteachers to have a greater role in working with schools to ensure that the duty to promote the educational achievement of looked-after children is fulfilled.
3.5.2The pupil premium grant allocation must be managed by the designated virtual school head for the children looked after by the authority. This has statutory force. It is a virtual school head who is best placed to know how to use pupil premium to maximise the benefits to looked after pupils.
3.5.3It is for the virtual school head to decide whether to provide £1900 to a school for a looked after child or a higher or lower amount. They can also decide on whether to pay termly or annually. They can also link allocation to the content of the Personal Education Plan as agreed with the school.
3.5.4It may be appropriate to pool some pupil premium for activities to benefit the authority’s looked after children more holistically. For example, to provide training for a group of designated teachers across the authority.
3.5.5There is no requirement to pass funding to non-mainstream education settings. There should be a discussion about what provision is being delivered and what would be provided in addition to that in accordance with the child’s Personal Education Plan.
3.5.6Pupil premium funding is not intended to fund posts that should be the responsibility of local authorities as a corporate parent. It should not be used to fund central services that would reasonably be expected to be funded by local authorities, to comply with their duty to promote the educational achievement of the children they look after. Virtual school heads will need to demonstrate a direct link between spending and raising standards of achievement for the children looked after by their authority, wherever they are placed.
3.5.7Although £1900 is allocated for each looked after child, irrespective of how long they have been in care, this does not necessarily mean that virtual head teachers are expected to manage the funding on the same basis to schools. Virtual head teachers can therefore manage the funding to take account of the length of time in care, as well as other factors, if they wish.
3.5.8It is recommended that virtual school heads discuss arrangements through their virtual school head regional structures.
4. PROPOSED ARRANGEMENTS FOR PUPIL PREMIUM ALLOCATION 2014-2015 TO POOLE LOOKED-AFTER CHILDREN
4.1All arrangements will be subject to annual review. Proposed changes would be returned to LMS through a forum report.
4.2During 2014-2015 pupil premium for looked-after children will continue to be allocated on a termly basis in order to follow children who move schools during this period. Allocation will, however, be in three equal amounts rather than weighted according to the length of the school term. This is to reduce administrative burden.
4.2 Pupil premium will be allocated to children who have been looked-after for at least 4 weeks continuously at the point of allocation. This is to reduce the risk of over-spend through allocation to children who are looked after for brief periods.
4.3 Allocation in the summer termwill be automatically processed for all maintained schools and academies during 2014-2015. Allocation in the autumn term will be subject to receipt of a high-quality Personal Education Plan with clear proposals for use of Pupil Premium. In the spring term allocation will be subject to an interim review of the targets identified in the Personal Education Plan (PEP) and the outcomes in conjunction with the Virtual School Head and Education Support Team.
4.4 The maximum pupil premium allocation for each looked-after child will be £540 per term (up to £1,620 annually), subject to the conditions identified in 4.3
4.5The Virtual School Headteacher will retain the remaining allocation of £280 for each looked-after child as proposed by the DFE 3.3.4. Based on current numbers of Poole looked-after children of school age this would be an estimated budget of £29,400, to be used to raise standards of achievement for looked-after children across the authority and those placed in other local authorities.
4.6Proposed use of this budget will be discussed and agreed with a multi-agency group, to include representation from designated teachers for LAC.
4.7Pupil premium funding will not automatically be allocated to settings funded by the local authority to offer highly specialist residential provision. Appropriate provision for achieving the highest educational outcomes for looked-after children will be stipulated at the point of agreeing a contract for placement. In exceptional cases, where a need is identified which cannot be met within the setting’s package of provision, opportunity would be given for such settings to bid for pupil premium allocation of up to £540 per term.
5. RETAINED PUPIL PREMIUM ALLOCATION
5.1 Possible uses of the retained pupil premium allocation to be discussed and agreed as part of the remit of a multi-agency group are as follows:
5.1.1Additional higher needs funding for hard-to-place children and young people tobe made available to looked-after children (who are excluded from the remit of the In-Year Fair Access Panel) through a bidding process.
5.1.2Additional funding for therapeutic interventions to be made available to looked-after children with identified SEN in the area of emotional developmentthrough a bidding process,where existing funding is already being utilised to measurably improve education outcomes especially in core subjects.
5.1.3 A model of attachment awareness to be developed in order to support schools and their staff in developing their practices in this vital area.
5.1.4 Projects to work with foster carers to promote support for looked-after children’s educational developmentto be implemented, recognising the significant impact of parental support on a child or young person’s educational achievement.
5.1.5Expansion of the current award-winning, nationally recognised Letterbox scheme to include all KS1-3 pupils.
5.1.6Enhanced training and development opportunities for designated teachers for looked-after children, including funded release time to meet new requirements in relation to review of PEPs and Pupil Premium use in conjunction with the Virtual School team.
6.CONCLUSION
6.1 The gap between the attainment of looked after children and their peers at Key Stages 1, 2 and 4 is still large, despite incremental improvement. The DFE Statistical First Release published 11 December 2013 and updated 2 April 2014on ‘Outcomes for Children Looked-After’ which illustrates this is attached as a web link(Appendix D). The Government’s aim,through significantly increased pupil premium funding for looked-after children and increased dialogue between the Virtual School Headteacher and schools about the targeting of pupil premium spending, is to strengthen existing strategies to close the gap.
6.2The Virtual School Head toolkit 25 March 2013 identifies three key areas of responsibility of a virtual school head for which s/he should be accountable are:
To make sure that there is a system to track and monitor the attainment and progress of looked after children
To ensure that all looked after children have a robust and effective personal education plan and access one-to-one support, including personal tuition where appropriate
To champion the educational needs of looked after children across the authority and those placed out-of-authority
The amendments outlined in the ‘Pupil Premium 2014 to 2015 Conditions of Grant’ and the Department for Education ‘Pupil Premium and the role of the Virtual School Head 2014-15 Frequently asked questions’ document offer an opportunity for the local authority (through the Virtual School Headteacher) and schools to take collective and individual actions to raise the educational achievement of our looked-after children and enhance their life chances.
6.3The processes and protocols outlined in this report will enablethe local authority and schools to demonstrate how they are working together to meet the new requirements to use Pupil Premium funding effectively in clear alignment with a robust PEP process.
Report Author:VICKY WALES
CHILDREN, YOUNG PEOPLE & LEARNING
TEL: 01202 262261
Contact officer:TAMMIE LEWIS
HEAD OF POOLE’S VIRTUAL SCHOOL FOR LOOKED
-AFTER CHILDREN
TEL: 01202 262736
Background Papers:
Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C
(Attached)
Appendix D