From April 2012 the pupil premium was extended to include children who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years. 

The pupil premium grant is additional funding for publicly funded schools in England. It’s a school-level grant that gives schools extra resources to help them meet challenges, including those arising from deprivation.

It’s allocated for schools to:

• improve the academic outcomes of disadvantaged pupils of all abilities
• close the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers across the country

You can find further information about the pupil premium in Pupil Premium Frequently Asked Questions (PDF, 174KB, 8 pages) .