Culture, Creativity and Narrowing the Gap – using pupil premium to enrich cultural education Graveney school is a secondary school located in the Borough of Wandsworth. The school intake is 2064 with 22% students eligible for pupil premium funding. The London average of secondary school pupils eligible for pupil premium in 2016–17 is 39.7%. The school was rated Outstanding by in 2015 and has a Progress 8 score of 0.34 which is above the national average within the top 20% of schools.

Key insights

• Facilitating pupil premium parental engagement through information evenings to increase awareness of the opportunities available, the purpose of pupil premium to provide equal access and entitlement and the impact that interventions can have. • Measuring and monitoring pupils destinations post Year 11 and Year 13 can help schools to understand the longer term impact of pupil premium funding on future education and employment pathways.

CASE STUDY Graveney School school journeys; grant support with residential curriculum, but some have said to pupils musical ability but also more widely in their How does the school aim visits; and free tuition in a musical instrument. that if you’re in key stage 4 you are not approach and attitude towards learning in to support disadvantaged Most of the funding is spent directly on participating in the school play. We know school. eligible pupil premium students but some out there, there has been a narrowing of pupils? activities have overlapping participation with the curriculum and arts related enrichment “We can see the bigger picture of what Graveney school’s pupil premium strategy the whole of the school, for example – extra activities. We are absolutely committed to music can do for an individual. For some it sets out to support pupils who may be at a tuition groups may also include non-pupil keeping those things going.” is building their confidence, for others it is disadvantage in accessing opportunities in premium students who need additional Deputy Headteacher, Graveney School developing their social skills, for others it’s relation to their peers because of financial support and are underperforming. having a focus and being able to learn. or family circumstances. The school aims to The aim of pupil premium to address the There are so many different skills you can remove barriers to pupil premium students’ To facilitate access and awareness of the differences in access to resources and learn through music.” academic achievement and ensure they can opportunities available, the school holds opportunities was seen to align with the Head of Music, Graveney School participate in the curriculum and enrichment an engagement evening for all parents and school’s commitment to offer all students activities at an equal level. pupils eligible for pupil premium funding. the same chance to explore arts and cultural Through the course of the evening parents are The lessons also provide more focused activities. 40% of the school’s pupil premium provided with information on: how the school attention than students would receive in “Our aim is to make sure no pupil premium funding is spent on extra-curricular/cultural aims to support their children; how parents regular lessons and can have wider benefits child is deprived of any opportunity that is and arts activity. The senior leadership team and carers themselves can support their to general behaviour and how children feel openly available to other pupils. That is feel that differences in socio-economical children; information of the range of support about attending school. Another knock-on why we fund musical tuition, the Duke of background can not only limit the financial available; and, evidence of the outcome effect is that pupil premium students are Edinburgh and subsidise pupil premium means to access but also the confidence destinations of previous cohorts of pupil motivated to join other arts and cultural students for other trips. Another aim is to The programme of to access these types of opportunities. premium students. activities within the school. The widening make sure that any barriers that do exist free musical tuition Offering arts and cultural opportunities are of participation in musical tuition has also for pupil premium students are overcome has been running for also perceived to have wider life enhancing encouraged the music department to look at early and that a child’s pupil premium “It makes it very clear to the parents that 3 years. benefits to students including raising the gaps in their broader enrichment offer status does not hold them back the school is very conscious of the group confidence, instilling self-discipline, and can and to increase the range of musical clubs, for academically.” and committed to their achievement but contribute to academic development. Musical example introducing a more informal band Deputy Headteacher, Graveney School also gives them an insight into what they tuition was selected specifically because it to meet the musical interests and styles of all can do at home to support their child’s is an activity where children have different students. Pupil premium pupil’s involvement progress. I think it breaks the ice between access depending on their ability to pay and The strategy and allocation of funding is in extra-curricular activities also allows them the school and the families as well. It’s an where increasing participation would benefit developed by the Deputy Headteacher and to socialise and develop relationships with a evening where we do talk about pupil the life skills of pupil premium students. school bursar. The allocation of the budget diverse mix of students across the school. premium as a very positive thing, as a is finalised after review of the impact of the thing that can really enhance both the previous year’s budget allocation against “Why music tuition? We think it opens a lot academic work of the child but also their “I think the pupils that learn musical KS4 attainment data. The school feels it is of doors to appreciation of the Arts in involvement in enrichment activities.” instruments are more confident and important not to see pupil premium students general and getting rid of that feeling of Deputy Headteacher, Graveney School learning a musical instrument opens up as a homogeneous group and look specifically being intimidated by those ideas. But we opportunities for further involvement in the at the progress of individuals or groups also think that learning a musical musical life of the school so for example of pupils (e.g. eligible students who have instrument gives you not just learning the they can join ensembles, they can join different ability levels) to tailor interventions. obvious skill of playing a musical How is narrowing the gap choirs... if you’re learning an instrument The school also takes into consideration wider instrument but also, if you stick with it, it you can become part of something bigger evidence and research from the Education strategy aligned with gives you self-discipline and there is some 40% of the school’s in the school.” Endowment Fund on what interventions work research that suggests learning a musical pupil premium providing access to arts Deputy Headteacher, Graveney School effectively in supporting students. The Deputy instrument actually improves your cognitive funding is spent Headteacher also has an open dialogue with and cultural opportunities abilities.” on extra-curricular/ each department within the school. Subject Deputy Headteacher, Graveney School The music department has also seen a steady cultural and arts for disadvantaged departments can request funding for extra increase of pupil premium students going on activity. provision they think will assist the progress of students? to study GCSE Music. It was felt this was partly The programme of free musical tuition has pupil premium pupils. Graveney school aims to provide a full range due to the free musical tuition increasing been running for 3 years. Free lessons are of arts and cultural opportunities across the wider musical engagement in KS3 of pupil offered to all pupil premium eligible students The school governors are presented with curriculum and enrichment activities, and it premium students. from year 7. Students are entitled to a free information regarding the progress and perceives this to be particularly important in paired lesson for 30 minutes each week. impact of activities. The curriculum governors’ the current climate of some schools reducing Students discussed how they enjoyed the Students also can sit musical grade exams committee provide full oversight of the opportunities for arts and cultural education experience of learning a new instrument. which are funded via pupil premium. Many of allocation and effectiveness of pupil premium because they need to focus resource on For some, it has increased their general the students have not accessed lessons before spend and hold the senior leadership to achieving key academic outcomes at KS4. confidence because of the sense of because of financial reasons. account for the decisions made. achievement they have gained from learning a new skill and/or passing musical grade “We are very aware with all the targets One of the perceived benefits of participation The main activities funded include: small examinations. One student felt it had helped that schools have to reach these days and in musical instrumental lessons is that it group and one-one English and Maths tuition; him with learning the theory needed for GCSE the pressure on schools to produce really requires learning and practice which are additional support staff to promote high levels Music and had taken his exam early. good outcomes at the end of key stage 4, key skills for achievement in education and of attendance and engagement with parents/ that there are some schools who have employment. Staff have observed students carers; provision of additional resources (e.g. really slashed the Arts. Not just in the gain increased confidence not only in their exam revision materials); free participation in “Playing an instrument allowed me to take “The pupil premium is a focus for all my GCSE music early. It’s also given me departments and year teams as well. Every skills to play the piano and sax and year in the Autumn we have the team thinking quickly from my sight reading … improvement and evaluation meeting When I came in to start the GCSE I already which is formally written up and data had an understanding of what was going focused. Every head of year and every on. It made it easier and it helps with my head of department will have a formal performance sections.” meeting with their line manager and the Pupil, Graveney School principal to review the outcomes, namely exam results and progress data, and part of that will be to drill down and look at how the pupil premium cohort did, did Evaluation, monitoring and they make the expected progress or did reporting they exceed it?” Deputy Headteacher, Graveney School The Deputy Head reviews the previous academic year allocation of spending each September. This also informs the final The success of the provision of free musical allocation of budget for that upcoming year. tuition is looked at in view of the wider review The review is based on self-evaluation of of musical department and outcomes. It was attainment data comparing the attainment felt that it is too early to look specifically at and progress of pupil premium and non- impact as students have not yet had their pupil premium students within the school and overall KS4 attainment outcomes. A positive nationally. The recent impact of pupil premium indicator of success so far has been increased funding has been regarded as extremely pupil premium students’ participation in extra- positive. Both pupil premium and non-pupil curricular activities and progression to study premium pupils performed well above the GCSE music. national average for all pupils in English and Maths. However, there is still is a small gap in attainment within school between pupil Key learning for the future premium and non-pupil premium pupils. The Deputy Head, Maeve Hamill, has learnt that school also monitors the percentage of pupil activities and interventions to support pupil premium students who progress into the sixth premium need to be actively promoted and form and destinations of students after Y11 and that children and parents will not just gravitate Y13. School attendance and participation rates to these opportunities without effective in extra-curricular activities are also used as communication as to what is available and outcome indicators. the wider benefits. The school has increased engagement through the pupil premium The focus on the progress of pupil premium parent evenings. It also feels that it is students also feeds into the school’s wider important not to stereotype pupil premium evaluation systems. Heads of year and heads families and assume they will be uninterested of subjects are provided with specific data in their child’s education or too intimidated for the pupil premium cohort to analyse to come into school. They feel schools should attainment and progress as part of their communicate pupil premium as funding to improvement and evaluation process. support families to get the same entitlements as other children rather than additional money because families are on a low income.

“It’s our philosophy that pupil premium provides the opportunities rather than it is some sort of label and that’s the way we want to present it.” Deputy Headteacher, Graveney School

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