Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to increase the value of the Early Years Pupil Premium in line with the recommendations of the Social Mobility Commission.

This Government is investing £1 billion of additional funding per year in the early years free entitlements, including £300 million per year to increase the national average funding rates. The Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) was introduced in April 2015 and provides over £300 per annum for each eligible child to help close the early development gap between children from disadvantaged backgrounds and their peers.

To develop the evidence base on the EYPP, the Department is currently undertaking through the Study of Early Education and Development (SEED), a review of the EYPP’s effectiveness. We are also undertaking a survey to explore how providers use their early entitlement funding, including the EYPP, to address disadvantage and deprivation within their settings. We are aiming to publish both reports in early 2017.