Liberal Democrats are calling for more support to be given to young carers in York by extending a successful national funding scheme.
The Lib Dems, along with groups such as the Carers Trust, are calling for Pupil Premium eligibility to be extended to include young carers.
The Pupil Premium is an additional allowance given to schools to support looked after children and those from low income families.
Children entitled to free school meals are eligible for the funding along with children in care, adopted children, children in hospital schools and service personnel children.
Schools in York have received £12.6 million since the Lib Dem policy was introduced in 2011.
From next April a new ‘Early Years Pupil Premium’ will pay early years providers up to an additional £300 for each of the estimated 359 three and four-year-old children currently eligible in York. Now the York Lib Dems say Pupil Premium eligibility should be extended to include young carers. These unsung heroes care for relatives, often disabled parents, in their own homes and still go to school and do all the work that the other students do.
Cllr Carol Runciman, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Children, Education and Young People who will move a motion on the issue at next week’s Full Council, commented:
“The Pupil Premium gives additional support for children in schools who need a little extra help. I know that local schools are using it to pay for things like extra support staff, summer clubs or guidance for parents and guardians. It was a key Liberal Democrat manifesto priority and has seen £12.6 million spent in York’s schools since 2011 to narrow the attainment gap that exists between pupils from disadvantaged and more affluent backgrounds.
“It is right that the scheme is being extended to cover early years and I believe that this successful model should now be used to give young carers extra support. There are 113 young carers registered with the York Carers Centre, but we know there are many more young people with caring responsibilities in the city. Unfortunately, we also know that some of these can have problems at school. On average young carers have lower attainment at GCSE level than their peers and can experience other problems such as bullying.
“A lot of outstanding work is already done to help young carers in York, but including them as eligible to receive the Pupil Premium would help schools and colleges to provide additional support. The funding would recognise the role that young carers play at home as well as help tackle the problems which can exist at school.”
The Pupil Premium was a Liberal Democrat manifesto policy introduced by the Coalition Government in April 2011 to provide additional support for looked after children and those from low income families.
Primary Schools receive £1,300 a year for each child eligible for Pupil Premium while Secondary Schools receive £935 a year for each eligible pupil. Schools will also receive £1,900 for each looked-after pupil.
The indicative 2014/15 allocation for schools in York is £4,884,000. This means that primary and secondary schools in York have received over £12.6 million since the Pupil Premium was introduced in 2011.
Allocation to schools in York:
2011/12 – £1,284,000
2012/13 – £2,567,000
2013/14 – £3,945,000
2014/15 – £4,884,000
York Liberal Democrats are calling on City of York Council to lobby the Government to extend Pupil Premium eligibility to include young carers.
Recent analysis shows that:
• 27% of young carers of secondary school age experience educational difficulties or miss school;
• This increases to 40% where they are caring for someone with substance misuse issues;
• Young carers between 16-18 are twice as likely to be Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET);
• 68% of young carers experience bullying at school and 39% said that nobody in their school was aware of their caring role;
• Young carers have significantly lower attainment at GCSE level than their peers, equivalent to nine grades lower overall;
• Young carers are four times more likely to live in households where no adult is in work.
Cllr Runciman will move the following motion at next Thursday’s Full Council (6:30pm in the Guildhall, York):
Extension of the Pupil Premium
Council notes:
• the Pupil Premium is an additional allowance to support certain groups of school-aged children and young people at risk of not achieving their potential;
• this year’s allocation of £4,884,000 means that primary and secondary schools in York have received over £12.6 million since the Pupil Premium was introduced in 2011;
• children entitled to free school meals are eligible for Pupil Premium of £1,300 a year for primary pupils and £935 a year for secondary pupils;
• whilst eligibility for free school meals is the main criteria for entitlement to Pupil Premium, other groups are also entitled to the Pupil Premium, including children in care, adopted children, children in hospital schools and service personnel children.
• Tim Farron MP, Liberal Democrat Party President, along with groups such as the Carers Trust has called for this eligibility to be extended to include young carers;
• There are 113 young carers registered with the York Carers Centre; however, the number of young people undertaking caring roles in York is widely believed to be far higher;
• The Government is currently consulting on its plans to extend the Pupil Premium in April 2015 to include a new ‘Early Years Pupil Premium’ for three and four-year-olds alongside plans to move the statutory entitlement to early learning for disadvantaged two-year olds to a participation funding model;
• An Early Years Pupil Premium would pay early years providers up to an additional £300 for each of the estimated 359 children currently eligible in York, providing an additional £103,330 in funding every year.
This Council believes that including young carers as a category of recipient eligible to receive the Pupil Premium would enable schools and colleges to provide additional support to these young people in York.
Council further believes that introducing an Early Years Pupil Premium would help all children get the best start in life and tackle what the Sutton Trust has identified as a 19 month gap at the start of school between the most and least advantaged children.
This Council therefore resolves to ask:
• The Chief Executive to write to the Secretary of State for Education, the Minister of State for Schools, and Dr. John Dunford OBE, the national Pupil Premium Champion, noting the contents of this motion and asking the Government to widen the eligibility for Pupil Premiums to include young carers;
• The Chief Executive to respond to the current consultation on Early Years Pupil Premium and funding for two-year olds in support of the Government’s proposals and its plans for rolling–out the schemes.