Free school meals/pupil premium

[Anncreemax]

Can anyone kindly give some advice on how the ever 6 free school meals and pupil premium criteria works in regard to school admission criteria

My question is does a child become eligible to apply for a pupil premium place from the date the child became eligible for (FSM) or from the date the junior school can apply for the funding.

For example a child becomes eligible for free school meals early June 2019 and has applied for a pupil premium place for September 2020 but the junior school won’t start receiving the funding for this child until the next financial year

In regards to ever six are children only included in this who are registered before January 2019 and the previous six years eligible to apply for a place for September 2020.

Or are all children registers as FSM anytime before the test date eligible to apply?

I have not been able to get a clear answer regarding this so if anyone can help I would be very grateful

[msquantity]

Your child must have been registered for and in receipt of Free School Meals at any point before the closing date for test registration (26 June 2020). You must tick the relevant box when registering for the entrance test. Failure to tick the box on your application will result in your child not being considered for one of the Pupil Premium places. 

This is the criteria for 2021 so assuming the dates are similar for 2020 entry a child would have to be registered and in receipt of school meals in june 2019 to be classified as PP in the September 2019 test for September 2020 entry

If you were eligible in June 2019 why were you not in receipt of free school meals immediately? Did you not apply or did the school delay applying?

I read another post which suggested it was immediate after application and that they only had it for 6 weeks until they found a job - still eligible for a PP place though.

I would also question just how much your child really was impacted prior to the exam but that's a fault of the PP system.

[hermanmunster]

Looking at the Birmingham website for admission in 2021 it looks like a child would have had to be receiving FSM before the date of the application ie June 2020. Presumably for a place in 2020 the key date was June 2019. The question is really, was the child receiving FSM before the closing date?

Your child must have been registered for and in receipt of Free School Meals at any point before the closing date for test registration (26 June 2020). You must tick the relevant box when registering for the entrance test. Failure to tick the box on your application will result in your child not being considered for one of the Pupil Premium places.

If you are unsure whether your child receives or has ever received Free School Meals, speak to their primary school.

Applicants who start to receive Free School Meals after the closing date (26 June 2020) will not be considered for one of the Pupil Premium places.

[Anncreemax]

Thank you for your replies

It is for Walsall QMGS my husband lost his job in April 2019 so around end of may 2019 I applied and got granted FSM early June 2019 for two of my children one in secondary school already and one who was I. Year five my son followed the outreach programme with the Grammar school as he was invited to do so.

I then applied for a pupil premium place at the Grammar school ticked all the relevant areas had the evidence form filled out by the primary school and handed it in to the Grammar school as requested.

He scored well above the minimum qualifying score for the school for pp entry but he was not offered a place. I have been unable to find out what exactly happen the date my son started getting FSM was provided on the evidence form at the correct time.
The junior school had not started to receive the pp funding as they are only able to apply at certain time’s of the year.

I have questioned the school regarding why the date he became eligible for FSM is not evidence but I can’t get an answer I understand that they are very busy but I need to know if this was an error

[Anncreemax]

Yes he was registered for FSM before the date he sat the test on September 2019

[msquantity]

But he needed to be registered and in RECIEPT of fsm at the application date in June 2019.
Sounds like the delay was in the school applying so I would be evidencing the date you submitted to the school and blame them for the unreasonable delay in submission onwards.

[Anncreemax]

Yes he defiantly had been registered for FSM and was receiving them by this date what I’m trying to question is could the school have refused the place because the school had not started to receive pp funding I am just trying to figure out why they didn’t offer him a place the primary school said he was registered and receiving FSM by June 2019 when I applied
Primary schools can only apply to the department of education for the pp funding for the school at certain times of the year as I have been advised so I’m not sure and am trying to find out if this could be the reason they refused

He deff was registered and receiving FSM in June 2019 then provided all evidence and sat test in September 2020

[hermanmunster]

have you asked the LEA?

[Anncreemax]

Yes they have advised me to speak to the school direct I have spoken to the school but I can’t get a clear answer from the admissions lady I’m not really sure she knows I emailed the head who emailed me back to say he has spoken to the admission lady and she will contact me I have written to the school asking them why but I can’t seem to get any replies

[Anncreemax]

She did say it is because the primary school had not started to receive the funding even though my child was FSM she said the have to be receiving the funding not just that the child is registered for FSM
the primary school have since confirmed to them again that he is FSM registered and they will be getting pp funding
I’m not sure if what I have been told is correct