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The Pupil Premium

What is the pupil premium, and how much is worth?

The pupil premium is additional funding provided to state-funded schools in England. The aim is to improve outcomes for disadvantaged children. In 2026 to 2027, the pupil premium is worth a total of £3.2 billion, and around 2.3 million pupils qualify.

Pupils attract pupil premium if they are:

• Disadvantaged, that is, they have been eligible for benefit-based free school meals (FSM) at any time in the last six years
• Looked after or formerly looked after children
• From qualifying armed services families

In 2026 to 2027, the deprivation pupil premium (the element linked to FSM eligibility) is worth £1,550 per qualifying primary pupil, and £1,100 at secondary level. This is a 2.3% increase in cash terms on the previous year, or an increase of 0.3% in real terms, when adjusting for inflation using economy-wide measures.

The Department for Education publishes annual pupil premium spending data by local authority, parliamentary constituency, and school.

What can schools spend pupil premium on?

Pupil premium funding is not ring-fenced, and there is no requirement to spend it on the children who attract it. It can be used for the general purposes of the school, but schools must follow the Department for Education’s grant terms.

Schools are required to publish a pupil premium strategy, outlining how funding is spent, evidence used to decide spending, and outcomes the previous year. Schools’ inspectorate, Ofsted, also looks at how well schools use pupil premium funding during routine school inspections.

Extension of free school meal entitlement in September 2026, and impact on pupil premium

Currently, new universal credit claimants only receive free school meals (FSM) if they have an earned household income of £7,400 or less per year. From September 2026, this earned income threshold is being removed, meaning any children in households receiving any level of universal credit award will qualify for FSM.

The government has previously estimated that the changes will bring free school meal entitlement to more than 500,000 additional children. If the pupil premium eligibility rules remained the same as currently, this could imply an increase in total spend on pupil premium (because free school meal entitlement triggers up to six years of pupil premium funding).

The government is concerned that deprivation funding more broadly is currently not targeted well at areas and children facing the most significant disadvantage. In its February 2026 white paper, Every child achieving and thriving, it confirmed plans for funding reform, via:

• potentially introducing a stepped funding model, where the amount of funding received by a school varies based on family income and level of disadvantage
• breaking the link between making a claim for FSM and attracting deprivation funding, which it says could reduce administrative burdens on schools
• potentially weighting funding based on where children live
• encouraging better use of deprivation funding, and more focus on evidence-based interventions, by introducing independent pupil premium strategy reviews for schools needing additional support

A consultation on deprivation funding is expected later in 2026.

In the 2026-27 financial year, deprivation pupil premium funding will continue to be allocated based on the £7,400 FSM income threshold.