Pupil Premium Funding
Pupil Premium at Ballifield
Current Arrangements (until Sept2026)
What is the Pupil Premium? (2025-26)
The pupil premium is additional funding given to schools to help support children who may be at greater risk of underachievement. At Ballifield Primary School, this funding is used to help ensure every child has the best possible opportunities to succeed.
Who is eligible for pupil premium?
The government provides this funding for pupils who:
Are currently eligible for free school meals, or have been at any point in the last 6 years
Are looked after by the local authority or have left care through adoption or another formal route
Have parents serving in the armed forces
How is the funding used?
We use pupil premium funding to:
Support children’s learning and wellbeing
Provide additional teaching or targeted interventions
Offer enrichment activities and wider opportunities
Our aim is to ensure all our pupils, regardless of background, achieve their full potential.
You can read more about how we spend our pupil premium funding and the impact it makes in our Pupil Premium Strategy Statement (link to your school’s report).
Pupil Premium Strategy Statement 2024-2027
Free School Meals from September 2026
More families can now receive Free School Meals
From 1 September 2026, the Government has expanded Free School Meal eligibility.
If your family receives Universal Credit, your child may now be entitled to free school meals, even if your household income is above the previous income limit.
Who can apply?
Your child may be eligible if your household receives:
- Universal Credit
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- The guaranteed element of Pension Credit
- Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- Support as a family with No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF)
If you receive Universal Credit, we encourage you to apply, even if you were not previously eligible.
What’s changing?
There are now two types of Free School Meal entitlement:
Targeted Free School Meals
- For families receiving Universal Credit with a household income of £7,400 or less, or certain other qualifying benefits.
- Schools continue to receive additional funding (Pupil Premium), and families may also be able to access other support such as free milk and Holiday Activities and Food (HAF).
Expanded Free School Meals
- For families receiving Universal Credit with a household income above £7,400.
- Children will receive free school meals, although this category does not attract additional funding or other linked benefits.
If your child already receives Free School Meals
From September 2026, eligibility will be checked regularly by Sheffield City Council.
This means that if your family’s circumstances change and you no longer meet the eligibility criteria, your child may no longer qualify for free school meals. This replaces the previous system, where some children kept their entitlement even after their circumstances changed.
How to apply
A child can only receive Free School Meals if:
- an application has been made; and
- Sheffield City Council has confirmed that they are eligible.
If you think your child may qualify, please apply as soon as possible so meals can be provided from the start of the school year.
If you need any help completing an application, please contact the school office—we are happy to help.
This version is around half the length of the original, focuses on the questions parents are most likely to ask, and places the most important information first.
For more information on the Pupil Premium, please visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium/pupil-premium