What is the Pupil Premium?

The Government introduced ‘Pupil Premium’ funding to raise achievement in schools. It is targeted at students from disadvantaged backgrounds to ensure they benefit from the same opportunities as students from more affluent families.  It encompasses students who are either: a) child in care; b) a previously looked after child; c) a child in receipt of free school meals; d) an Ever 6 FSM child (those who have been in receipt of free school meals in the past 6 years) and e) a child whose parents are actively serving in the Armed Forces.  Those in categories a and b are referred to as Pupil Premium Plus and receive funding in addition to the standard Pupil Premium award.  You can read more about Pupil Premium here.

How the Pupil Premium is spent is monitored closely, with all schools accountable for the impact of the money spent. We produce a Pupil premium strategy statement, which is reviewed annually, and the most recent one can be found on this page. 

Applying for Pupil Premium

You can use this link to apply

If you require further help or assistance you can contact Dr Michael Brodie on mbrodie@bristolcathedral.org.uk

Pupil Premium at BCCS

The primary focus of the Pupil Premium grant is to support your child to thrive at school. Intended outcomes for all students in receipt of Pupil Premium funding include:

• Pupil Premium students’ attainment will be in line with their peers.
• Pupil Premium students’ achievement will be in line with / above their personalised estimations and predictions.
• Pupil Premium students’ achievement and attainment will be supported by their parents’/carers’ engagement.
• Pupil Premium students’ engagement in and enjoyment of learning inside school will be promoted and facilitated.
• Pupil Premium students’ ongoing engagement with education, employment and training post 16 will be promoted and facilitated.
• Staff are trained and developed to remove barriers to learning and underachievement in order to support their academic outcomes and the wellbeing of the student.
• Subject leaders will identify the educational resources which are essential to their curriculum areas, and your child will be supplied with these. 
• English and maths staff will identify students who they believe will benefit from additional support in one or both of these areas and students in Years 7, 10 and 11 will be offered additional tutoring outside of school hours.  
• Students in Years 7, 8 and 9 who are identified as needing reading support will be provided with a reading programme by the school.
• The school endeavours to pay for 50% of any school trip offered including Year 7 camp.
• Music staff will identify students who they believe will benefit from additional music lessons. We will support up to 50% of the costs. This includes Year 7 trailblazers.
• We will support students who require a counselling service through a referral process.
• The school will offer a free breakfast to all pupil premium students in the Cresswell Café each day.
• Visits to Universities.
• Homework Club/coursework catch-ups.
• Specialised Year 11 mentoring for GCSEs and post-16 applications.
• Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme.
• Student Support with mental wellbeing.
• Outside speakers.
• Parent/Carer workshops/programmes.
• Individual Learning Mentors.
• Holiday Revision and Exam technique sessions including Easter revision school.
• Online revision and learning support resources.
• Careers advice and guidance.
• Transitional support across key stages.

This list is not exhaustive and should your child have an alternative requirement, or if you have a query regarding Pupil Premium, please contact Dr Brodie on mbrodie@bristolcathedral.org.uk. Please note that the entitlements on a case-by-case basis will be decided by the school based on need and impact, and may not necessarily be appropriate for all students.

As a school focused on reflective practice and continuous improvement we encourage parental feedback to enable us to provide the best possible support for our students. If you have any suggestions or comments regarding Pupil Premium, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Pupil Premium reports

Below you can find our current Pupil Premium strategy statement and those for a few recent years. For our reports on Pupil Premium grant expenditure (for previous years) and proposed expenditure (current year), click the links below:

The Elevate Programme

Students entitled to the Pupil Premium Plus funding are considered for the school's Elevate programme. This is an academic intervention designed to support students in English and Maths.

Students benefit from personalised tuition in Maths and English on alternate weeks, delivered by a subject specialist. The aim is to accelerate their subject progress no matter what level or grade the student is working at.

Free School Meals

Children attending BCCS whose parents or carers are on the benefits listed below may be entitled to receive free meals at school:

• Universal Credit if your household income is less than £7,400 a year or £616.67 a month after tax
• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• the guaranteed element of State Pension Credit
• Child Tax Credit (as long as you're not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190)
• Working Tax Credit run-on (paid for four weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit)
• support under Part 6 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

Entitlement To Free School Meals – How can I apply?

To find out if you are eligible to claim free school meals and to make an application for your child(ren), please click here. This is a quick online form that takes 1-5 minutes to complete. You will need to input your National Insurance number and date of birth.

You will need to make a separate application for each child who currently attends Bristol Cathedral Choir School.  

If your child is not currently in receipt of free school meals but you feel that you may be eligible, please also complete the online application form. The system will quickly check your eligibility and notify you by email of the outcome.  

If we find your child is eligible for free school meals, they'll remain eligible until they finish their phase of schooling (primary or secondary) at the end of this academic year. 

If you are having any issues using the system or require any further information, please contact Ruth Leonard, Data Manager on rleonard@bristolcathedral.org.uk 

Additional eligibility criteria:

From April 2014, maintained schools, non-maintained special schools and general hospital schools will attract the Pupil Premium for children in Reception to Year 11:

• who left care under a Residential Order on or after 14 October 1991 (under the Children Act 1989);
• who left care under a Special Guardianship Order on or after 30 December 2005 (under the Children Act 1989);
• who were adopted from care on or after 30 December 2005 (under the Adoption and Children Act 2002);
• where the parent self-declares their child’s status to the school, providing supporting evidence (e.g. an adoption order); and
• where the school records on the October School Census that it has a child on roll who meets the above criteria.

Please contact our administration team for more details about registering with the school for Pupil Premium: telephone 0117 353 5000.