Service Pupil Premium

What is the Service Pupil Premium?

The Department for Education (DfE) introduced the Service pupil premium (SPP) in April 2011 in recognition of the specific challenges children from Service families face and as part of the commitment to delivering the armed forces covenant.

State schools, academies and free schools in England, which have  children of Service families in school years reception to year 11, can receive the SPP funding. It is designed to assist the school in providing the additional support that these children may need and is currently worth £335 per Service child who meets the eligibility criteria.

DfE’s ever 6 service child measure

The premium was extended , such that any pupil in reception to year 11, who has been flagged as a Service child in the last six years, will continue to receive the premium (Ever 6 service child). Please see the ESFA’s pupil premium grant guidance for more information.

Ex Service personnel should tell the school if they left the armed forces within the last six years. Under the DfE’s ever measure, schools will continue to receive Service Pupil Premium for up to six years for children whose parent(s) left the armed forces, provided the children were recorded as Service children in a school census (prior to their parent(s) leaving the forces).

The purpose of the Service pupil premium

Eligible schools receive the SPP so that they can offer mainly pastoral support during challenging times and to help mitigate the negative impact on Service children of family mobility or parental deployment.

Mobility is when a Service family is posted from one location to another, including overseas and within the UK.

Deployment is when a Service person is serving away from home for a period of time. This could be a 6 to 9-month tour of duty, a training course or an exercise which could last for a few weeks.

How Service pupil premium differs from the pupil premium

The SPP is there for schools to provide mainly pastoral support for Service children, whereas the pupil premium (PP) was introduced to raise attainment and accelerate progress within disadvantaged groups; however, mobile Service children may need targeted help in a new school to catch up with their class or to cover gaps in understanding due to missing out on key learning areas.

To check eligibility for the Service Pupil Premium please click here.

Click HERE for our Service Pupil Premium Statement of Intent 2023-24