School leaders say they are missing out on millions in pupil premium funding because a shift in eligibility dates means children who became entitled to free meals during recent lockdowns would not be counted.
Last year the Department for Education announced that eligibility for the funding – an additional £1,345 or more for schools for each primary school pupil in England who received free school meals – would be based on the school census held in October 2020, rather than in January as in previous years.
But a survey of school leaders by the National Association of Head Teachers found that the numbers of pupils on free school meals rose dramatically between October and January, confirming earlier reports from local authorities of increased numbers.
As a result schools are having to pay the additional costs of provision for disadvantaged children but without receiving any additional payments from government until 2022.
Andrew Reeves, the head teacher of Fairmeadow primary in Newhall, Derbyshire, said his school had an extra seven pupils who would have become eligible for the pupil premium between October and January. The payment is intended to provide support for schools to help disadvantaged pupils and meant his school was going to miss out on £9,415.
Reeves said that because his school budget didn’t have any reserves, he would need to use the DfE’s one-off catch-up funding, worth about £80 per pupil, to help those who would have been eligible for pupil premium support.
“In funding terms they are giving with one hand and taking away with another. That £9,000 is a significant sum for us because that’s all money that would go to help those pupils that really need it,” Reeves said. “Because of a random shift of dates, these children are going to lose out on some opportunities, that’s the frustration. It feels like the wrong time for the government to do this.”
Judith Hodgson, the head teacher of Brandon primary school in Durham, said she had 14 pupils who had become eligible between October and the previous cutoff date in January.
Hodgson said she was “not surprised” at the increase because her school is in a deprived part of Durham with 124 children eligible for the pupil premium out of the 310 on its roll.
“Financially it leaves us stretched,” Hodgson said. “We’ve got to be the champions for education in our community and our children need that funding.” Funds were used to pay for support and interventions such as after-school sessions with small groups.
The NAHT survey had responses from more than 1,300 school leaders in England, with 62% reporting that they had five or more pupils who became eligible for the pupil premium between October and January. One in 10 schools reported having 20 or more pupils who became eligible.
The NAHT said the lost funding for five pupils in primary schools is £6,725 – more than the average £6,000 in Covid-19 catch-up funding allocated by the DfE.
“A three-month gap may not seem like it would make a big difference. But given the volatile financial situation for many families due to Covid-19, it is an exceptionally bad time to implement this change,” said Paul Whiteman, the NAHT’s general secretary. “The government must put this right. We aren’t asking for additional money here. Only for what schools would have received if this census date change hadn’t been implemented. If they don’t they will be abandoning those children most in need at the most critical time.”
A DfE spokesperson said: “We moved to using the October census to calculate pupil premium allocation so that schools know their budget earlier in the year, helping them to plan ahead. We expect pupil premium funding to increase to more than £2.5bn in 2021-22, reflecting an increase in the number of eligible pupils.”
The NAHT’s figures may underestimate the problem, as universal credit claims between October and January rose by 269,000 in England, an increase of more than 5%. Last year more than 1.5 million children were eligible for free school meals but this could rise by 30% to 40% this year according to some estimates.
Kate Green, the shadow education secretary, said the government had failed to protect family finances during the pandemic, and accused ministers of “compounding this failure with the risk that disadvantaged pupils will be left behind”.
Judith Blake, chair of the Local Government Association’s children and young people board, said no school should lose funding as a result of an administrative change. “Schools need certainty that they will not lose out as soon as possible,” Blake said.
