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Pupil Premium (England): can it pay for a STEM workshop?

Short answer

Possibly, with conditions

Allocated fundingAllocated each year, no application round

Pupil premium is allocated automatically and must, by the conditions of grant, be spent on evidence-informed activities within DfE's published menu of approaches. A bought-in STEM workshop can fit the wider-strategies tier, which names enrichment and extracurricular activities explicitly, but the school must be able to show the activity is targeted at disadvantaged pupils and helps close the attainment gap, not simply general enrichment for all.

Checked on the funder's website on 10 November 2026. View the funder's page (gov.uk)

How to use it for a workshop

Frame the workshop as a wider-strategies enrichment activity targeted at disadvantaged pupils, and reference the evidence for it in the school's published pupil premium strategy statement, due by 31 December each year.

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Key facts

What it is
Annual per-pupil grant to English state schools for disadvantaged pupils. It is allocated automatically, not applied for, and must be spent on evidence-informed activities within DfE's menu of approaches, one strand of which is wider-strategies enrichment.
Amount
For the 2026 to 2027 financial year: £1,550 per eligible primary pupil (FSM Ever 6, reception to year 6), £1,100 per eligible secondary pupil (FSM Ever 6, years 7 to 11), £2,690 per looked-after or previously looked-after pupil (Pupil Premium Plus), £360 per eligible service child (Service Premium)
Who can apply
SchoolNo application: schools receive it automatically based on eligible pupils. Pupil premium plus for looked-after children may be managed by the local authority.
Phases
Primary, Secondary
Where
England
Funder
Department for Education (DfE)

Matching workshops

Other schemes you could apply to now

Open all yearPossibly, with conditions

BlueSpark Foundation grants

Amount
Most grants are under £2,000; none are more than £5,000
Deadline
Open all year, no fixed deadline
Open all yearCan pay for a workshop

Edina Trust Science Grant Scheme

Amount
£1,000 primary school science grants (£500 for Junior & Infant schools) and £700 nursery science grants
Deadline
Open all year, no fixed deadline
Open all yearPossibly, with conditions

Garfield Weston Foundation

Amount
From £1,000 to several million pounds, depending on the charity's size and scope of work
Deadline
Open all year, no fixed deadline

Compare every scheme on School funding

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