Pupil Premium Plus – 2025 Update

Who’s Eligible?

• Children who have been looked after for at least one day during the year ending March 2025 – as recorded in the March 2025 children looked-after data return – and who were aged between 4 to 15 on 31^st August 2024.
• Children with an EHCP should have personalised additional support in place in school so they can access an effective education. PP+ funding can still be requested to provide additional items or to enhance provision further.

How Does the Funding Reach Our Children?

This is where it gets interesting! PP+ isn’t handed directly to individual families. It’s designed to benefit your child directly in their school setting. Here’s how it works:

• Managed by Virtual School Headteachers: The funding is given to local authorities and then managed by the Virtual School Headteacher (VSH). The VSH is a champion for all looked-after children in their area, ensuring their educational needs are prioritised.
• Flexible Allocation: The VSH can either pass all of the funding directly to the child’s school, or they can retain some of it to fund activities that will benefit a group of, or all, looked-after children in the local authority. This flexibility allows for broader support initiatives, such as specialised training for teachers or group mentoring programmes.
• School-Led Decisions (with a plan!): PP+ isn’t a personal budget for individual pupils.  Schools are expected to assess the specific needs of their cohort of disadvantaged pupils and decide how best to use the funding to be most effective.
• Multi-Academy Trusts can pool resources for use of PP+ funding across schools.
• Evidence-Informed Approaches: Virtual Schools work closely with schools to ensure the funding is used effectively to help deliver outcomes identified in a child’s Personal Education Plan (PEP). This means that any activities funded must be found within the menu of approaches and be evidence-informed.
• The Education Endowment Foundation publishes evidence-informed strategies to guide schools in choosing the most effective approaches by impact and cost.

How Can You See How PP+ is Being Used?

Transparency is key! As a foster carer, you have every right to know how this vital funding is benefiting the child in your care:

• School Website Strategy Statements: Schools that receive PP+ funding for more than five eligible pupils are required to publish a Pupil Premium strategy statement on their website by December 31st each year. This demonstrates how the school is using the funding to improve educational outcomes and raise attainment of disadvantaged pupils.
• Personal Education Plan (PEP) Meetings: These regular meetings (which should happen three times a year) are the opportunity to discuss your child’s educational progress. The use of PP+ funding and its impact on your child’s attainment should always be a key discussion point. You as carers, a representative from the school and your child’s social worker should all attend.
• Ask your child’s social worker: they attend each PEP meeting and usually have access to the PEP document online which is a record of the funding school have requested to support your child to achieve their PEP targets. 
• Ask the School Directly! Don’t hesitate to speak to your child’s school. They should be able to explain how the PP+ funding is being used and how it specifically benefits your foster child.