Research School Network: Leadership of Pupil Premium Leadership of Pupil Premium

Leadership of Pupil Premium

There is a lack of consistency in the leadership of Pupil Premium / supporting disadvantage pupils. There is a lack of clarity over the expectations of the role.

Roles can range from strategic leadership to specific work supporting individual pupils and families. It can also focus on operational compliance (e.g. getting the published statement uploaded).

The variability around the expectations, training, support and capacity can stymie systemic impact.

This job description / person specification has been written based on how the role is enacted in schools where disadvantaged pupils are thriving and outcomes are strong.

The role would be enhanced by consistent, high quality training, updated at regular, frequent points. This training should be quality assured, based on research evidence and good practice. The learning available to disadvantage leads should be consistent across the system.

Pupil Premium lead job description / person specification (example)

• This person should sit on the senior leadership team.
• This person should have regular, frequent contact with those leading on teaching and learning, pastoral care and personal development, as well as curriculum leadership.
  
• The key purpose of the role is to engage and unite the school community around raising the attainment and wider outcomes for disadvantaged pupils, irrespective of the numbers of disadvantaged pupils in the school community.
  
• The Pupil Premium lead should draft the schools’ disadvantage strategy, utilising the five step process outlined in The EEF Guide to the Pupil Premium

The Pupil Premium Lead’s responsibility is to ensure that all stakeholders have an understanding, clarity and ownership of the strategy, in particular:

• Its intent and ambition
• Intended outcomes and success criteria
• The challenges faced by disadvantaged pupils within their school community and the impact disadvantage is having on their learning
• Individual, and collective activity enacted to address the challenges, and the evidence that supports its implementation within the tiered approach

The Pupil Premium lead is responsible for the effective implementation of the strategy, and should work with other leader around quality assurance of provision, and ensure that the voices of key stakeholders are heard.

The Pupil Premium lead should:

• Undertake the necessary training and support to ensure they have the relevant expertise in their role,
• Seek out examples of excellent practice in contextually similar settings,
• Commission an external review of strategy and provision where appropriate
  

School leadership teams where disadvantaged pupils are thriving academically and socially:

• Have domain specific knowledge (both of strategy and activity)
• Are evaluative / reflective about the effectiveness of provision (not mirror mirror on the wall)
• Can lead and embed change (this is HARD, especially when changing beliefs, assumptions and prior experiences)
• Have empathy and understanding (but don’t slip into sympathy / killing with kindness)

Are committed to:

• Evidence informed practice (engaging with, and utilising the best available evidence from trusted sources such as the EEF, Education Policy Institute, Joseph Rowntree Foundation) and a professional curiosity in what is seen to be working and under what conditions in their own, and other schools
• Building teacher knowledge, agency and expertise (for challenging assumptions, not justifying decisions)
• Focus on what’s in the schools’ gift (they don’t chase the wind).

To support efforts to build system wide expertise, Unity Research School and Essex Research School are running an online twilight programme. Details can be found here

Marc Rowland
Unity Research School