Pupil Premium

Support for Disadvantaged Pupils

We want all of the children at Light Oaks Junior School to achieve their very best while they are with us: our aim is that they are ready for High School by the time they leave us at the end of Year 6. However, we recognise that some pupils may be disadvantaged in a variety of ways which mean they may not achieve as well as they should.  The Government gives all schools some additional funding to help close the gaps between these pupils and their peers.  The Department for Education (DfE) defines 'Disadvantaged' students as those who:

• Have been eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) within the previous six years
• Have been or are currently a looked after child (or cared for children)

We also recognise that there are many additional reasons why pupils may be disadvantaged such as: having additional needs; being a young carer; having a social worker or experiencing difficult life events.  We use our extra funding to help us close gaps between these children and others in a number of ways:

• By improving teaching and learning in all classrooms, providing high quality training and CPD for our staff
• By investing in extra staff to enable us to provide small group and 1:1 interventions and support
• By investing in support for wellbeing, mental health, attendance and social skills help

Since the pandemic, gaps have widened between disadvantaged pupils and their peers.  Despite the challenges that the lockdowns  but we are committed to ensuring that gaps in basic skills (including mastery of KS1 skills) and gaps due to low attendance are closed as quickly as possible – areas that were highlighted by Ofsted in our recent inspection.

Our *NEW* 3 year Pupil Premium strategy for 2024-27 can be viewed below.  This includes an overview of our previous use of the pupil premium funding and annual reviews of the strategy. 

Pupil Premium Strategy 2024-27

Free School Meals: Where can I get more information?

If you are not sure whether your child is eligible for Free School Meals or would like more information about how you should go about claiming an entitlement, please contact Mrs Taylor at the school office, in confidence. Information can also be found on Salford City Council's website here.

For more information about how we plan provision and track progress, please contact our inclusion lead, Mrs Walker (Deputy Head).

We are always keen to talk to parents of children who receive Pupil Premium, to ask for their ideas on what they feel is the most effective provision. Your son or daughter may be doing extremely well at school but there may be things that we can do to stretch them more, to build their confidence, to develop particular skills or to help them raise their aspirations further. If you have particular ideas that you would like to discuss or share with us, please contact your class teacher or Mrs Walker.

Further Information from the DfE