Pupil Premium Strategy Statement 2025-26
What is the Pupil Premium?
The Pupil Premium is a type of funding which was first introduced in April 2011. The school receives the Pupil Premium each financial year from the DfE, with the amount received determined by the number of students receiving free school meals (FSM), are Looked After or are from military families.
The funding is provided to ensure that these students are not disadvantaged in any way. The Pupil Premium is paid by means of a specific grant, based on number of pupils in the school who are registered as eligible for Free School Meals or who are Looked After Children. The Pupil Premium is additional to main school funding and it will be used to address and minimise any underlying inequalities between children eligible and those who are not eligible for the Pupil Premium
Statement of intent
Colne Park High School is an inclusive learning community where students are given opportunities to learn and succeed within a safe, well-ordered environment. We aim to raise the aspirations and attainment of disadvantaged pupils through a range of evidence informed experiences which complement their learning and expand cultural capital.
We are committed to all students making at least good progress. The focus of our pupil premium strategy is to support disadvantaged pupils to achieve that goal, including those that are high attainers. We realise that the gap has widened after the pandemic and will target resources at raising the attainment of disadvantaged pupils.
When making decisions about using Pupil Premium funding it is important to consider the context of the school and the subsequent challenges faced. The English indices of deprivation (IoD) 2025 measure relative levels of deprivation in England. Of the 296 local authority districts in England, the index of multiple deprivation (IMD) ranks Pendle 13th within the most deprived 10% of all authorities. A change from 2019 ranking (36th out of 296) Pendle is ranked as the most deprived authority in Lancashire on the domains; barriers to housing and services and the living environment. On the domains of income, employment, and education, skills and training, Pendle ranks amongst the 20% most deprived areas in England. On the health and disability domain Pendle is in the 20% most deprived areas. On the living environment domain Pendle is in the 20% most deprived areas in England. (LCC Indices of deprivation 2025)
When we have completed our own analysis of the deprivation data by post code of the students on roll at Park High, we know that 30% of our students come from postcodes in the bottom 10% of most deprived in the country. Significantly, 49% of our students come from postcodes in the bottom 30% of most deprived significantly below national average. Local Deprivation Explorer 2025
Figures from the Department for Work and Pensions March 2023 show 8,836 Pendle Children aged under 16 were living in relative poverty. A household is considered to be in relative poverty if its income is below 60% of the current median average. Pendle has the highest level of child poverty of any UK local authority with 43.2% of children under 16 living in relatively low income families. Lancashire Telegraph
Quality first teaching is at the heart of our approach, with a focus on areas in which pupil premium pupils require the most support in school. This is proven to have the greatest impact on closing the attainment gap and at the same time will benefit the non-pupil premium pupils in our school. Implicit in the intended outcomes is the intention that non-pupil premium pupils’ attainment will be sustained and improved alongside progress for their pupil premium peers.
Our approach will be evidence informed alongside research conducted by the EEF. Throughout the academic year the progress of pupil premium students will be closely monitored with a three tiered approach to assessment; regular low stakes assessment, half termly diagnostic assessments and termly summative assessments in order to act early to intervene and ensure pupil premium students are challenged in the work they are set. We will ensure that all teaching staff are involved in the analysis of data and identification of pupils, so that they are fully aware of strengths and weaknesses across the school
Through effective use of this additional funding, Colne Park High School is fully committed to ensuring that the individual needs of each entitled child is met. As a result of the additional funding, the school expects that eligible pupils will make better progress and achieve higher standards than would have been likely without it. This will be demonstrated by a narrowing of the Attainment 8 Gap (no Progress 8 figures for 2025 and 2026 due to no KS2 data nationally). A key focus of the strategy will be to improve Pupil Premium outcomes:
- the % of eligible pupils achieving at least a grade ‘5’ in English and Mathematics
- the % of eligible pupils entered for the English Baccalaureate
The Pupil Premium Strategy is a working document and outlines a whole school approach in which staff take responsibility for disadvantaged pupil outcomes and raise expectations of what they can achieve.
Monitoring, Evaluation and Review
The policy will be reviewed every year.
PUPIL PREMIUM STRATEGY STATEMENT 2025-26 AND REVIEW OF 2024-25