Agenda item

8.1

The Committee considered a report of Councillor Gill Furniss, Chair of the Pupil Premium Task and Finish Group, on the outcome of a review undertaken by the Group to identify best practice and any recommendations in terms of the use of the Pupil Premium and its impact on attainment in Sheffield primary schools.

8.2

The Task and Finish Group comprised Councillors Gill Furniss and Diana Stimely, Jules Jones and Alison Warner, and the review had taken place between January and March 2014.

8.3

Councillor Diana Stimely introduced the report, referring to the approach taken by the Task and Finish Group.  Jules Jones reported on the key themes and context of the Group and Alison Warner focused on the Group’s recommendations.

8.4

All Members of the Group confirmed that the review had been a very positive and worthwhile experience.

8.5

Members of the Committee raised questions and the following responses were provided:-

·                The primary schools visited by the Task and Finish Group had been chosen by the Children and Young People Service, and were geographically spread across the City, and had varying numbers of children receiving the Pupil Premium.  The Group heard evidence of a wide range of services and activities that the schools were spending the Pupil Premium funding on.  A significant amount of the funding had been used to fund the provision of staff and staff training in connection with the provision of education and activities targeted specifically at the children concerned.  It had not been easy, due to the short period of the review, to identify any outcomes, in terms of cost benefit analysis. 

·         The types of activities differed between the schools, in that in those schools with higher numbers of children attracting the Pupil Premium, there was more emphasis on group activities, whereas, in the other schools, the activities tended to be more individualised.  In some schools, the funding was used to employ a worker to visit the homes of children who, for various reasons, had difficulties getting to school on time, and would work with the families involved in order to overcome this problem.

8.6

RESOLVED: That the Committee:-

(a)       approves the report of the Pupil Premium Task and Finish Group now submitted, and notes the comments made and the responses to the questions raised; and

(b)       thanks the members of the Task and Finish Group for the valuable work they had undertaken as part of the review.