Pupil Referral Unit Department of Education

In February 2021 because of Covid. The UK government announced a one-off recovery premium as part of its package of funding to support education recovery. Including for Pupil Referral units.

The recovery premium provides additional funding for state-funded schools in the 2021 to 2022 school year.

Building on the pupil premium, this funding will help schools to deliver evidence-based approaches for supporting disadvantaged pupils.

Who is Eligibile?

All schools including pupil referral units that are eligible for pupil premium are eligible for recovery premium. This includes the following types of schools:

mainstream primary, secondary and all through local authority-maintained schools, academies and free schools serving children aged 4 to 15

• local authority-maintained special schools
• special academies and free schools
• non-maintained special schools
• pupil referral units
• alternative provision (AP) academies and free schools
• local authority-maintained hospital schools and academies

The recovery fund will provide funding to local authorities for eligible pupils they have placed in independent special schools, where the local authority pays full fees, as recorded on their January 2021 alternative provision census.

Pupil eligibility The following pupils will attract recovery premium funding to schools similar to pupil premimum. IT will mean:

pupils who are eligible for free schools meals (FSM) pupils who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last 6 years children looked after by local authorities and referred to as looked-after children (LAC) post-looked after children (post-LAC) Funding Funding allocations School allocations will be calculated on a per pupil basis.

Mainstream schools will get:

£145 for each eligible pupil in mainstream education £290 for each eligible pupil in a special unit Other types of eligible schools will get £290 for each eligible pupil.

Specialist provision will have a greater amount. Recognising the significantly higher per pupil costs they face

The least amount a school or pupil premium will recieve is called the ‘floor’ to ensure that:

an eligible primary school will not receive less than £2,000 an eligible secondary school will not receive less than £6,000 As with pupil premium, the funding for looked-after children will be paid to the local authority and should be managed by the virtual school head.

School allocations and the conditions of grant will be published ahead of the first payment in September.

Payment schedule The recovery premium will be paid in 4 payments to schools during the 2021 to 2022 academic year on the following schedule.

Maintained schools payment schedule Payments will be sent to local authorities on the last working day of each month in:

Academies payment schedule Payments will be made on the first working day of each month in:

Using recovery premium funding Schools should spend this premium on evidence-based approaches to supporting pupils. In line with the Education Endowment Foundation’s pupil premium guide, activities should include those that:

support the quality of teaching, such as staff professional development provide targeted academic support, such as tutoring deal with non-academic barriers to success in school, such as attendance, behaviour and social and emotional support