Gove 'robs Peter to pay Paul' in bid to help poor pupils

Education Secretary Michael Gove said 625m would be put into the premium next year rising to 2.5bn by 2014/15 as he announced the funding councils would receive for their school budgets next year. Next year the premium will be paid to pupils who receive free school meals but from 2012 it will be extended to children who have previously had their meals paid for.

Mr Gove said: "The pupil premium, a key coalition priority, will target extra money at pupils from deprived backgrounds – pupils we know under achieve compared to their non-deprived peers – in order to support them in reaching their potential."

Charities, however, warned the amount of extra money being allocated will not make a difference while Labour claimed the policy would result in some schools in deprived areas missing out on cash.

Save the Children's head of UK policy, Sally Copley, said: "While the announcement of the Pupil Premium is welcome, we are dismayed that the level has been set so low for 2011/2012.

"Our estimate is that it takes an extra 3,000 per child significantly to narrow the shocking attainment gap between richer and poorer students – that is seven times as much as the Government has allocated.

"Even if the Government spending on the premium does rise, as projected, four-fold over the next three years, it still doesn't reach this critical level."

Shadow Business Secretary John Denham said he believed two-thirds of schools would see their funding drop next year.

"If it was new money going to the poorest pupils, I'm sure we would be very pleased about it," he added.

"This is money that's already in the education budget, simply being redistributed, robbing Peter to pay Paul."

Bradford Council's executive member for children and young people Coun Ralph Berry said he feared the city would lose out overall because although it was gaining money from the premium it would lose grants aimed at supporting areas facing social disadvantage.

Treasury Chief Secretary Danny Alexander insisted the schools budget had increased in real terms and that freezing the pay of teachers meant more spending power was available.

Mr Gove announced yesterday that local councils would receive the same level of funding per

pupil in 2011-12 as they had received in this school year.

However, the grants which schools receive have been streamlined into one payment, the Minister said.