School celebrates Pupil Premium Awards win

Staff and pupils at High View School in Efford are celebrating after being announced as one of the regional winners of the 2015 Pupil Premium Awards.

Head Teacher Kim Dorian-Kemp received a £25,000 prize from Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg at a glitzy awards ceremony in London earlier this week for the most effective spending of Pupil Premium funding.

High View School qualified for the 2015 Pupil Premium Awards and won £1000 earlier this year, after the key stage 2 results were published last December. Their results showed that they have made or continue to make impressive improvements in the attainment of their disadvantaged pupils.

Headteacher Kim Dorian-Kemp said: “We are absolutely delighted and honoured to have received this award and everyone at High View is very proud. We have very high aspirations for all of our children, regardless of their starting point. We will put the prize money towards further developing our strategies to overcome barriers linked to disadvantage.”

The Pupil Premium Awards reward schools which are able to provide evidence of effective strategies to improve the achievement of disadvantaged pupils and show sustained improvement in raising their attainment. The pupil premium is extra funding schools receive for every disadvantaged pupil they teach.

High View School is situated in an area of significant social and economic deprivation but has benefited from a programme of regeneration and a new school building. It is recognised by Ofsted as an Outstanding School and SATs results over time show that children are performing above national expectations by the time they leave the school.

Councillor Sue McDonald Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Public Health said: “Being announced as one of the regional winners is a fantastic result and shows that High View is doing their upmost to ensure that the attainment of their disadvantaged pupils does not fall below those of their classmates.”

“I’m really pleased that the staff have been recognised on a national level for their outstanding commitment and dedication to ensuring the excellent progress of children that have benefitted from this extra funding. It is reassuring to know that Plymouth schools can successfully compete against the best schools in the country.”