Campaigners calling for the pupil premium to be extended to disadvantaged 16 to 19-year-olds have secured £120,000 for research to strengthen their case. Tutoring charity Get Further won the grant from the Santander UK Foundation to investigate the funding gap facing disadvantaged learners and bolster their calls for a post-16 student premium. Learning and Work Institute will look into what happens to disadvantaged learners after pupil premium funding ends at age 16. Public First will use that evidence to build an economic case to the government for targeted per-student funding. Get Further has convened the Student Premium Coalition, whose 20 members include the Association of Colleges, Association of Employment and Learning Providers, the Sixth Form Colleges Association and the Association of School and College Leaders. It wants ministers to introduce an estimated £430 million a year from academic year 2027-28 for colleges, sixth forms and training providers, matching the projected secondary-school pupil premium rate of £1,122 per eligible learner. Eligibility would be based on whether a learner currently receives, or has previously qualified for, free school meals. The funding could pay for extra English and math tuition, mentoring or student support initiatives to improve attendance and progression on top of existing disadvantage funding. Santander UK Foundation, established in 1990, has recently relaunched with a new strategy focused on disadvantaged 16 to 19 year olds in further education. Its priorities include attainment, enrichment and transition into and out of FE. Years of calls The pupil premium was introduced by the coalition government in 2011 to improve attainment for disadvantaged pupils. Over the years there have been numerous calls for successive governments to extend the premium, which currently stops at 16. Those calls have been consistently rejected, with ministers arguing that disadvantage funding is provided through the 16 to 19 funding formula. In July 2024, the Education Policy Institute estimated that funding targeted at disadvantaged young people was nearly £1000 lower per learner in post-16 education than in secondary schools. The following year, September 2025, parliament’s education committee urged ministers to introduce a student premium. The government declined the committee’s recommendation, arguing the funding formula already provided support for disadvantaged learners and those with low prior attainment. It cited £776 million in disadvantage funding allocated for 2025-26, alongside £245 million for English and maths and around £195 million in bursaries. In a written parliamentary answer in April, children and families minister Josh MacAlister pointed to an expected 10.5 per cent rise in average post-16 funding per learner between 2024-25 and 2026-27. The coalition argues these arrangements still leave no direct equivalent to the school pupil premium. ‘Clear-cut case’ Alice Eardley, Get Further’s interim chief executive, said: “The strongest predictor of long-term NEET status is leaving education without good qualifications, yet targeted support for underserved young people falls away at precisely the point when gaining those qualifications matters most for their future prospects.” Alice Eardley She said the research would give ministers a “clear-cut case” for extending support beyond 16. Eardley is also a trustee of Santander UK Foundation, having joined its board in February 2026, according to Companies House records. The first research report is expected later this autumn. Stephen Evans, chief executive of Learning and Work Institute, said: “We know that the 16 to 19 education phase shapes so much of what comes next, but a large attainment gap between young people based on their background represents a waste of potential for both them and the economy. “We are delighted to be supporting the coalition with research to help change that and give policymakers and practitioners a clearer picture of where to act.” FE Week is a member of the Student Premium Coalition.