Pupil Premium and Service Premium Funding
Pupil Premium
Free School Meals
Important changes from September 2026
The rules for Free School Meals (FSM) changed from September 2026.
All children and young people whose household receives Universal Credit can now receive Free School Meals, regardless of the household's earnings.
However, there are now two categories of Free School Meals:
- Targeted Free School Meals (Targeted FSM) – these pupils are eligible for Free School Meals and are also included in the Pupil Premium funding arrangements.
- Expanded Free School Meals (Expanded FSM) – these pupils are entitled to a free meal at school but are not included in the Pupil Premium or Ever 6 FSM measures.
This distinction is important because receiving a free school meal does not necessarily mean that a pupil attracts Pupil Premium funding for their school.
Who can apply for Free School Meals?
From September 2026, you should apply if your household receives Universal Credit.
You may also be eligible if you receive:
- Universal Credit
- Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- The guarantee element of Pension Credit
- Certain support where your family has No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) and meets the relevant government income criteria.
Eligibility must be checked and verified. It is not automatically granted simply because a family receives a qualifying benefit.
Universal Credit households
There are two categories:
Targeted FSM
Your child will qualify for Targeted FSM if your household receives Universal Credit and has annual household earnings of £7,400 or less.
Targeted FSM pupils:
- receive a free school meal;
- are included in the Pupil Premium arrangements;
- are included in the Ever 6 FSM measure, where applicable;
- may also qualify for other support linked specifically to benefits-related FSM, such as the Holiday Activities and Food (FUEL) programme.
Expanded FSM
If your household receives Universal Credit but your annual household earnings are above £7,400, your child will qualify for Expanded FSM.
Expanded FSM provides a free school meal but does not make the pupil eligible for Pupil Premium funding.
How do I apply?
If you think your child may be eligible, please apply for Free School Meals through Wiltshire Council.
A claim needs to be made and then checked against the government's eligibility information. Wiltshire Council's Free School Meals service carries out eligibility checks, and families may be contacted if additional information or evidence is required.
Apply as soon as possible if you think you are eligible.
You can find the latest information and application arrangements on the Wiltshire Council website:
Wiltshire Council – Free School Meals
https://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/schools-learning-free-school-meals
If you are unsure whether you qualify, we recommend applying. Wiltshire Council will carry out the eligibility check.
Please note that you need to apply even if your child has previously received Free School Meals, as the previous transitional protection arrangements ended on 31 August 2026. Eligibility is now based on the new criteria and will be checked again annually.
Targeted FSM and Pupil Premium
It is important to understand the difference between being entitled to a free school meal and being counted for Pupil Premium.
From September 2026, Pupil Premium continues to be linked to Targeted FSM, rather than to all pupils who receive a free meal.
A pupil who is eligible for Targeted FSM can therefore attract additional funding for their school. The Ever 6 FSM measure is also now based on pupils who are or have been eligible for Targeted FSM during the previous six years.
Pupil Premium funding helps schools provide additional support and opportunities for eligible pupils. The funding is allocated to the school rather than being a cash payment directly to families.
Expanded FSM
Expanded FSM is a new category introduced from September 2026.
If your household receives Universal Credit but your annual household earnings are above £7,400, your child is entitled to a free school meal under the Expanded FSM arrangements.
At The John of Gaunt School, pupils who are eligible for Expanded FSM will have £2.85 per school day allocated for them to spend in the school canteen.
It is important to understand that Expanded FSM is a meals-only entitlement.
An Expanded FSM pupil:
- receives the allocated £2.85 per school day to use in the canteen;
- is entitled to a free school meal;
- is not classed as a Pupil Premium pupil;
- does not attract Pupil Premium funding;
- is not included in the Ever 6 FSM measure.
This means that, unlike a pupil eligible for Targeted FSM, an Expanded FSM pupil does not attract the additional school funding associated with Pupil Premium and does not automatically receive financial support or other school benefits that are specifically linked to Pupil Premium eligibility.
The government has introduced separate funding arrangements to support schools with the expansion of Free School Meals, but this should not be confused with Pupil Premium funding.
Why should I apply?
Even if you are unsure whether your household meets the criteria, it is worth applying if you receive Universal Credit or another qualifying benefit.
Your application will allow the appropriate eligibility category to be established and will ensure that your child receives the Free School Meal entitlement they are eligible for.
For families eligible for Targeted FSM, registering also ensures that the pupil can be identified for the purposes of Pupil Premium and other support linked to disadvantage funding.
For families eligible for Expanded FSM, registering ensures that your child receives their free school meal allocation, even though Expanded FSM does not attract Pupil Premium funding.
Need help?
If you have questions about Free School Meals eligibility or your application, please contact Wiltshire Council's Free School Meals team.
https://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/schools-learning-free-school-meals
Wiltshire Council Free School Meals Service
Telephone: 01249 706258
Mrs Jeffries is our Raising Standards Leader for Pupil Premium. If you have any enquiries, please contact ejeffries@jog.equamead.org / PP@jog.equamead.org
Background information
The challenge set by the Department for Education (DfE) is for every educational establishment to ‘diminish the difference’ that exists between our disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged young people. In April 2011, the DfE introduced Pupil Premium funding to help schools support students who may be disadvantaged by their context. This funding contributes towards the strategies we implement at The John of Gaunt School in an attempt to provide equity of support and opportunity for all our students.
Our aspirations for the life-chances of the disadvantaged child
We are determined to provide all of our students with the opportunities to be involved in a broad range of experiences, to access all possible learning activities and resources and be able to achieve the results required to study at university or have a career in a highly skilled occupation. Our aim is to have no attainment or progress gap between Pupil Premium students and their peers.
An overview of the approaches taken by The John of Gaunt School
We plan the allocation of the additional funding in an attempt to maximise the impact on all our disadvantaged students dependent on their needs and desires. We use evidenced-based research from leading educationalists and educational groups such as John Hattie, Sir John Dunford, Ofsted, the Sutton Trust, and the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) toolkit to inform our decision-making. We also take into consideration the views of the students and the families that we serve.
Our strategies vary from individual support to whole-school initiatives that may have a positive effect on closing the attainment gap, including those disadvantaged students who are deemed to be more able. We understand that, fundamentally, the most effective action a school can take is to provide high quality teaching and learning. Considerable effort by all staff is placed on ensuring the experience and guidance students receive in the classroom is highly effective and this includes positive discrimination in planning, delivery of lessons and feedback provided to our disadvantaged students who may not be able to access the same amount of support and provision outside of school compared to their peers. Training is provided to increase the awareness of the support these disadvantaged students require and how these pedagogical strategies can be implemented.
The funds allocated for this group are distributed in a way that each child has the equipment and resources required to access the curriculum, to feel and believe they are on an equal standing with their peers, and they are as aspirational as their peers about their future pathways. The school has a Pupil Premium spending plan that clearly lays out how the additional funds are used, the aims of the strategies, the impact made and the next steps the school needs to take to either ensure positive outcomes or enhance the progress made to that point.
Service Pupil Premium Funding (SPP)
The Department for Education (DfE) introduced the Service Pupil Premium (SPP) in April 2011 in recognition of the specific challenges children from service families face and as part of the commitment to delivering the armed forces covenant. It is designed to assist the school in providing additional pastoral support to help lessen the negative impact on service children when their parents or carers have been deployed to a new location. It is not the same as Pupil Premium funding that is provided to raise attainment and accelerate progress of disadvantaged groups.
The John of Gaunt School has a few service children in its cohort. However, our students within this category are supported in a flexible and personalised way where appropriate. This funding is ring-fenced for SSP specific support.
Support can be provided in various forms, including transition work, additional pastoral-team time for additional liaison between The John of Gaunt School and the responsible adults of the service child, a counselling programme, a mentoring programme and any other child-centred pastoral needs.
