The city has been selected for the first round of Early Years Pupil Premium funding, putting it among seven places in the UK to receive money ahead of April’s nationwide rollout.
Its allocation is £137,198 during the project’s initial three months, with this money already having been given to Stoke-on-Trent City Council, and it will enable nurseries based within the city to help up to 1,273 youngsters from deprived backgrounds.
Those nurseries will be eligible for additional support of approximately £300 for each child aged between three and four that fits the criteria for suitability, and the council will be given a further £366,595 for 2015/16.
The nurseries will have the option of using local businesses, like those supplying Stationery printing in Stoke-on-Trent, when it comes to securing new supplies to help the children.
Bentilee Nursery School headteacher, Juliet Levingstone, told the Stoke Sentinel:
“The issue with early years is that it’s non-statutory, which means previously we’ve not been able to access the funding that five-year-olds are eligible for, so the new pupil premium funding is really welcome.”
She added that the money would allow the nursery to buy additional equipment and supplies that it would have struggled to afford previously.Get a Free Quote for Stationery