Finalists announced in 2015 Pupil Premium Awards
The finalists in the 2015 Pupil Premium Awards have been chosen, in recognition of their work to improve the attainment of disadvantaged pupils at Key Stage 4.
Each of the 140 finalists has won at least £5,000 and eligible schools will be invited to apply for prizes worth up to £250,000, which will be awarded at a ceremony hosted by the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, in March.
The pupil premium is extra funding schools receive for every disadvantaged pupil they teach and is worth £2.5 billion this year. The Pupil Premium Awards reward schools that are able to provide evidence of effective strategies to improve the achievement of disadvantaged pupils and show sustained improvement in raising their attainment.
Congratulations to all ASDAN centres who have been named among the finalists:
One of this year’s winners in the Key Stage 4 category was Dinnington High School, where CoPE was initially used as the primary qualification to engage learners who had the potential to underachieve. This was successful and pupils secured an increasing number of qualification passes, which in turn led to a dramatic decline in the number of pupils who went on to become NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training). Wider Key Skills then became part of a broader curriculum package, balancing academic and vocational.
The number of pupils achieving at least one A*-G GCSE (or equivalent) reached 100 per cent, those achieving five A*-G grades increased to 98 per cent and eight A*-G to 87 per cent. Pupils take up employment and education opportunities that allow them to make use of the skills they have developed through ASDAN qualifications. Significantly, training providers and employers have said that these skills have been major factors in pupils being selected above others for their programmes.
In the employment sector Working With Others, Improving Own Learning and Performance and Problem Solving have been of particular interest. The education sector is pleased with the impact Research, Oral Presentation and Discussion has on preparing young people with skills that will benefit their study.