What Is Pupil Premium Funding 2023?

Pupil Premium funding amounts aren’t always consistent year-to-year. Even slight changes in funding for pupils in receipt of Pupil Premium can have a considerable impact overall for your school, so it’s a good idea to keep an eye on school funding rates every year. 

This blog not only covers Pupil Premium grant amounts for all types of funding from 2016 to 2023/24, it also separates each type and shows year-on-year changes (if any), to help you spot any potential trends. We also include a handy funding calculator so you know exactly how much to expect.

See also: National Tutoring Programme

What Is Pupil Premium?

Pupil premium funding was introduced in 2011 to help schools to close the attainment gap between children from different socio-economic backgrounds. The sums of money paid to schools vary depending on whether the school is primary or secondary and which category the pupil comes under.

Pupil Premium can be spent on tutoring from external tutoring organisations such as Third Space Learning. Because Third Space Learning is a DfE-approved Tuition Partner, schools can also use their National Tutoring Programme funding in conjunction with Pupil Premium to cover the costs.

Pupil Premium And Pupil Premium Plus Levels 2023/2024

For the 2023/2024 academic year the rates for all types of Pupil Premium will increase by 5% on the previous year:

• Primary pupils who are eligible for Free School Meals, or have been eligible in the past 6 years: £1,455
• Secondary pupils who are eligible for Free School Meals, or have been eligible in the past 6 years: £1,035
• Pupils currently or previously looked after by a local authority or other state care: £2,530

Pupil Premium And Pupil Premium Plus Levels 2022/2023

For the 2022/2023 academic year the rates for all types of Pupil Premium will increase by 2.7% on the previous year:

• Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) for pupils who meet the eligibility criteria (LAC, previously LAC or whose parents meet the criteria for Free School Meals): £342.
• Pupils in Primary School (Reception to Year 6) recorded as Ever 6 FSM (qualified to receive free school meals presently or any time over the previous six years): £1,385.
• Pupils in Secondary School (Years 7 to 11) recorded as Ever 6 FSM: £985.
• Looked after children (LAC) and previously LAC (adopted from care, or under a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order): £2,410.
• Service children (pupils from Reception to Year 11 recorded as an Ever 6 service child or in receipt of a child pension from the Ministry of Defence): £320.

Pupil Premium And Pupil Premium Plus Levels 2021/2022

For the 2021/2022 academic year the rates for all types of Pupil Premium remained unchanged from the previous year:

• Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) for pupils who meet the eligibility criteria (LAC, previously LAC or whose parents meet the criteria for Free School Meals): £302.
• Pupils in Primary School (Reception to Year 6) recorded as Ever 6 FSM (qualified to receive free school meals presently or any time over the previous six years): £1,345.
• Pupils in Secondary School (Years 7 to 11) recorded as Ever 6 FSM: £955.
• Looked after children (LAC) and previously LAC (adopted from care, or under a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order): £2,345.
• Service children (pupils from Reception to Year 11 recorded as an Ever 6 service child or in receipt of a child pension from the Ministry of Defence): £310.

Pupil Premium And Pupil Premium Plus Levels 2019/20

For the 2019/2020 academic year the rates for all types of Pupil Premium remained unchanged from 2018:

• Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) for pupils who meet the eligibility criteria (LAC, previously LAC or whose parents meet the criteria for Free School Meals): £302.
• Pupils in Primary School (Reception to Year 6) recorded as Ever 6 FSM (qualified to receive free school meals presently or any time over the previous six years): £1,320.
• Pupils in Secondary School (Years 7 to 11) recorded as Ever 6 FSM: £935.
• Looked after children (LAC) and previously LAC (adopted from care, or under a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order): £2,300.
• Service children (pupils from Reception to Year 11 recorded as an Ever 6 service child or in receipt of a child pension from the Ministry of Defence): £300.

Pupil Premium And Pupil Premium Plus Levels 2018/2019

For the 2018/2019 academic year the rates for most Pupil Premium funding remained unchanged, but increased by £400 per pupil for Pupil Premium Plus. Rates for the 2018/2019 year were:

• Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) for pupils who meet the eligibility criteria (LAC, previously LAC or whose parents meet the criteria for Free School Meals): £302.
• Pupils in Primary School (Reception to Year 6) recorded as Ever 6 FSM (qualified to receive free school meals presently or any time over the previous six years): £1,320.
• Pupils in Secondary School (Years 7 to 11) recorded as Ever 6 FSM: £935.
• Looked after children (LAC) and previously LAC (adopted from care, or under a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order): £2,300.
• Service children (pupils from Reception to Year 11 recorded as an Ever 6 service child or in receipt of a child pension from the Ministry of Defence): £300. 

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Pupil Premium And Pupil Premium Plus Levels 2017/2018

For the 2017/2018 academic year the various rates of additional funding were unchanged from the previous year and set at the following rates:

• Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) for eligible pupils (LAC, previously LAC or whose parents meet the criteria for Free School Meals): £302.
• Pupils in Primary School (Reception to Year 6) recorded as Ever 6 FSM (qualified to receive free school meals presently or any time over the previous six years): £1,320.
• Pupils in Secondary School (Years 7 to 11) recorded as Ever 6 FSM: £935.
• Looked after children (LAC) and previously LAC (adopted from care, or under a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order): £1,900.
• Service children (pupils from Reception to Year 11 recorded as an Ever 6 service child or in receipt of a child pension from the Ministry of Defence): £300.

Pupil Premium And Pupil Premium Plus Levels 2016/2017

For the 2016/2017 academic year the various rates of additional funding were set by the Department for Education at the following rates:

• Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) for eligible pupils (Looked after children (LAC), previously LAC or whose parents meet the criteria for Free School Meals): £302.
• Pupils in Primary School (Reception to Year 6) recorded as Ever 6 FSM (qualified to receive free school meals presently or any time over the previous six years): £1,320.
• Pupils in Secondary School (Years 7 to 11) recorded as Ever 6 FSM: £935.
• LAC and previously LAC (adopted from Local Authority Care, or under a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order): £1,900.
• Service children (pupils from Reception to Year 11 recorded as an Ever 6 child of a member of the armed forces, or in receipt of a child pension from the Ministry of Defence): £300.

As you can see, the major fluctuation for the past few years has been the £400+ increase in Pupil Premium Plus funding, beyond which there has been little change in Pupil Premium rates.

However it’s worth remembering that Ofsted have recently given greater focus to Pupil Premium spending during inspections, so having a good grasp on funding changes is of greater importance for headteachers and other school leaders.

What Can Pupil Premium Be Spent On? 

As we’ve already noted, Pupil Premium funding must be spent on strategies to help close the attainment gap. These can include learning interventions for individual pupils, hiring more teaching assistants etc. The EEF’s intervention toolkit is a great reference for which strategies are most cost-effective.

We’ll be keeping this post updated with each new year’s rates as they’re announced, so watch this space!

Read More:

• Pupil Premium: A Guide For Primary School Leaders
• Ofsted & Pupil Premium: What They Will (And Won’t) Be Looking For
• 10 Low-Cost Pupil Premium Interventions To Use In Your School
• 45 Best Ways To Spend Your Pupil Premium Funding
• How To Maximise The Impact of Your Pupil Premium Funding
• Catch Up Funding

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