Detail

Data

School name

St Mary’s Catholic Primary School and Nursery, Chorley.

Number of pupils in school

210 (28 in nursery class)

Proportion (%) of pupil premium eligible pupils

6.2% (January 2022)

Academic year/years that our current pupil premium strategy plan covers (3 year plans are recommended)

2021/ 2022 to

2024/ 2025

Date this statement was published

18.01.22

Date on which it will be reviewed

July 2022

Statement authorised by

Mr P Smyth

Pupil premium lead

Mr P Smyth

Governor / Trustee lead

Mrs St John

Detail

Amount

Pupil premium funding allocation this academic year

£ 24,175

Recovery premium funding allocation this academic year

£ 2, 000

Pupil premium funding carried forward from previous years (enter £0 if not applicable)

£ 0

Total budget for this academic year

£ 26, 175

From their first day to their last at St Mary’s, we support our children on a journey of learning and faith.

In learning, by the time they leave our school, we want our children regardless of their background or the challenges that they face: to be numerate and literate, to have received their full entitlement in all areas of learning, to have the opportunities to succeed in areas of particular interest to them. We want all children to make good progress and achieve as highly as possible. We want the children to be active and healthy.

On their journey of faith, we want to support our children to develop into well-rounded citizens of the future. We want the children to be thoughtful, loving, caring and considerate members of society. We want the children’s attitudes, choices, decision-making and relationships to be underpinned and informed by Christian values with Christ at the centre of all we do at school.

The focus of our pupil premium strategy is to support disadvantaged pupils to achieve these goals. We will consider the challenges faced by all vulnerable pupils and the activities in this statement are also intended to support their needs regardless of whether they are disadvantaged or not.

Our approach in achieving these goals is informed by research carried out on effective use of pupil premium funding. It involves:

• high quality teaching at its core, as this is proven to have the greatest impact on closing the disadvantage attainment gap. At the same time, it will benefit the non-disadvantaged pupils in our school.
• the use of targeted academic support such as small group interventions to support those not making good academic progress.
• the use of wider strategies relating to the most significant non-academic challenges to success in school which may impact negatively upon academic attainment e.g. behaviour, attendance and social and emotional support.

Challenge number

Detail of challenge

1

In some cases, there is a gap in attainment between disadvantaged pupils and their peers early on in their education e.g. in the EYFS/ Y1.

2

In some cases, disadvantaged pupils have additional or special educational needs

3

In some cases, disadvantaged pupils have worries, concerns or experience other social and emotional issues, which may get in the way of their learning or might influence their behaviour.

4

In some cases, financial pressures may limit pupil participation in school activities e.g. trips.

5

In some cases, family pressures or specific family circumstances impact on a pupil's punctuality and attendance

Intended outcome

Success criteria

The gap in attainment identified early on in disadvantaged pupils’ education decreases.

The gap in attainment between disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged pupils across the curriculum narrows to the point where it is no longer significant especially by the end of key stage 2. End of KS assessments by 2024/ 2025 show gap in attainment has narrowed.

The pupils who are disadvantaged and also have additional or special educational needs are well supported to make good progress across the curriculum.

The pupils who are disadvantaged and also have additional or special educational needs make good progress given their starting points across all areas of the curriculum. Analysis of progress of disadvantaged pupils across curriculum shows pupils have made good progress given starting points.

Disadvantaged pupils with worries or concerns, which could get in the way of their learning or might impact on their behaviour are supported through means such as regular access to a counsellor.

Disadvantaged pupils with worries or concerns are identified and monitored regularly, (at a minimum of termly meetings). Some pupils access a school counsellor and are supported in concerns or worries.  Sustained high levels of wellbeing from 2024/25 demonstrated by:

qualitative data from pupils and parent surveys and teacher observations

a significant increase in participation in enrichment activities, particularly among disadvantaged pupils  

All disadvantaged pupils are able to access trips, music lessons, clubs and so on.

Disadvantaged pupils access to wider school activities e.g. trips, music lessons and clubs is not limited by financial constraints.

a significant increase in participation in enrichment activities, particularly among disadvantaged pupils  by 2024/2025

Disadvantaged pupils’ punctuality and attendance is broadly in line with the school average taken as a whole.

The gap between attendance and punctuality of disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged pupils is reduced to a point where there is not a significant difference. This is monitored at least termly and reported to Governing Board.

Sustained high attendance from 2024/25 demonstrated by:

the overall absence rate for all pupils being no more than 4%and the attendance gap between disadvantaged pupils and their non-disadvantaged peers being reduced by 2 %.

Activity

Evidence that supports this approach

Challenge number(s) addressed

Introduce the Nuffield Early Language Intervention. It is delivered by specially trained teaching assistant, working with children in reception (4–5 year olds) individually and in small groups. It also

The Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI), a language support programme designed to improve children's vocabulary, listening and narrative skills, had a positive impact on the language skills of children in the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) trial.

https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/projects-and-evaluation/projects/nuffield-early-language-intervention

1

Improve the quality of social and emotional (SEL) learning through delivery of PSHE.

SEL approaches will be embedded into routine educational practices and supported by professional development and training for staff.

There is extensive evidence associating childhood social and emotional skills with improved outcomes at school and in later life (e.g., improved academic performance, attitudes, behaviour and relationships with peers):

3

Enhancement of our maths teaching and curriculum planning in line with DfE and EEF guidance.

We will part-fund teacher release time to embed key elements of guidance in school and to access Maths Hub resources and CPD (including Teaching for Mastery training) including embedding mastery approach and Number Sense for EYFS/ KS1.

The DfE non-statutory guidance has been produced in conjunction with the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics, drawing on evidence-based approaches: Maths_guidance_KS_1_and_2.pdf (publishing.service.gov.uk)

The EEF guidance is based on a range of the best available evidence:

Improving Mathematics in Key Stages 2 and 3

1

Provide additional teaching assistant (TA) support to deliver personalised teaching programmes.  For example, teachers and teaching assistants deliver small phonics and spelling groups and small mathematics and English intervention groups - this allows pupils to receive phonics lessons in smaller, more personalised and more effective groupings.

Phonics approaches have a strong evidence base indicating a positive impact on pupils, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Targeted phonics interventions have been shown to be more effective when delivered as regular sessions over a period up to 12 weeks:

Phonics | Toolkit Strand | Education Endowment Foundation | EEF

1, 2

Read Write Inc. Phonics Blended Training Package

Annual subscription to all Online Training films • Leadership Implementation Day: one day face-to-face or 4 hours of remote sessions • One day face-to-face training for up to 45 staff (advised limit 30 during COVID-19) • One Development Day: one day face-to face or 4 hours of remote sessions • Remote termly pupil progress meetings

Phonics approaches have a strong evidence base indicating a positive impact on pupils, particularly from disadvantaged back-grounds.

School has conducted an audit with DfE English Hub school and identified that whole school training will raise standards further in phonics and address needs especially of those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

1, 2

Introduce Reading Plus as an intervention to raise standards in reading in KS2.

Similar schools to St Mary’s have used this intervention to great effect.

https://www.readingplus.co.uk/research-and-results/efficacy/

1

Activity

Evidence that supports this approach

Challenge number(s) addressed

Additional TA to support disadvantaged pupils and disadvantaged children with additional learning needs in class, to enable pupils those pupils to narrow gaps in achievement with their peers.

TAs deployed to groups to provide catch up or pre-learning opportunities.

https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/education-evidence/teaching-learning-toolkit/teaching-assistant-interventions

1,  2

Engaging with the National Tutoring programme to provide a blend of tuition, and/ or school-led tutoring for pupils. A significant proportion of the pupils who receive tutoring will be disadvantaged, including those who are high attainers.

Tuition targeted at specific needs and knowledge gaps can be an effective method to support low attaining pupils or those falling behind, both one-to-one:

One to one tuition | EEF (educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk)

And in small groups:

Small group tuition | Toolkit Strand | Education Endowment Foundation | EEF

1, 2

Activity

Evidence that supports this approach

Challenge number(s) addressed

Provide pupil counselling opportunities with a fully qualified pupil counsellor to support wellbeing of identified disadvantaged children. 

There is extensive evidence associating childhood social and emotional skills with improved outcomes at school and in later life (e.g., improved academic performance, attitudes, behaviour and relationships with peers):

EEF_Social_and_Emotional_Learning.pdf(educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk)

3

Provide additional staffing and activities at lunchtimes to support pupils who may have worries or behavioural difficulties to help develop social and emotional skills.

There is extensive evidence associating childhood social and emotional skills with improved outcomes at school and in later life (e.g., improved academic performance, attitudes, behaviour and relationships with peers):

EEF_Social_and_Emotional_Learning.pdf(educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk)

3

Fund appropriate enrichment opportunities for eligible pupils to meet their social and pastoral needs e.g. extra-curricular activities for children in school and in school holidays and contributions to the cost of school trips etc.

https://d2tic4wvo1iusb.cloudfront.net/documents/guidanceForTeachers/EEF-Guide-to-the-Pupil-Premium-Autumn-2021.pdf

4

Fund attendance at Breakfast Club to en-sure pupils have break-fast and arrive in school on time.

https://d2tic4wvo1iusb.cloudfront.net/documents/guidanceForTeachers/EEF-Guide-to-the-Pupil-Premium-Autumn-2021.pdf

5

Contingency fund for acute issues.

Contingency fund for acute issues.

1-5

The progress of disadvantaged pupils as a group is tracked closely. The headteacher meets with class teachers termly to analyse this data. The headteacher reports the progress of the disadvantaged group to the relevant committee of the Governing Board termly.

As a result of the additional support from teaching assistants in phonics groups 97% of children in current Y3 cohort have met phonics threshold and 76% of current Y2 cohort.

As a result of the use of additional welfare staff on the playground at lunchtimes there were very few incidents of bad behaviour.

The data from last year shows that the majority of this group of pupils made expected or better progress given their starting points in reading, writing and maths. A small number made less than expected progress in either one or two of those subjects.

All disadvantaged pupils were able to access tutoring sessions through the National Tuition Programme either individually or in small groups. All made progress as a result of these sessions either in English or mathematics.

The pupil premium was used to fund three children in Year 6 to attend the residential outdoor and adventurous activity visit towards the end of the year. Observation by the staff in attendance and feedback from children and parents demonstrated the value of this experience in developing social and emotional skills, independence and readiness for high school.

One child has accessed guitar lessons due to pupil premium funding.

A number of identified disadvantaged children received counselling support from a fully qualified child counsellor.

As part of pupil premium and catch up premium  provide small group interventions and programmes by teaching assistants to accelerate progress

Offer for breakfast club not really taken up to ensure pupils have breakfast and arrive in school on time.