The government has announced that it is to invest a further £22.5 million in primary schools, as part of the pupil premium.

This funding boost is designed to close the gap in education between children from wealthy backgrounds and those from disadvantaged ones.

It has specifically been earmarked for publicly funded schools that have been identified as being in need of extra cash to support their efforts in raising attainment levels in those most in need.

Schools minister David Laws said that this supplementary boost in funding will help youngsters from the moment they enter school – it's important to identify where extra support is needed from the outset.

"We know that schools are using their pupil premium funding more effectively than ever to raise the performance of those children who need extra help," Mr Laws added.

"We have already made significant progress towards closing the gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers. This additional funding will ensure that teachers continue to have the resources they need to give all pupils the best possible start at school, regardless of their background."

Commenting on the news, Ian Bauckham, immediate past president of the Association of School and College Leaders, said that providing primary schools with an "uplift in pupil premium" is one of the most effective ways of tackling social inequality.

"Putting additional money into primary schools is the right way to tackle disadvantage," he continued. "The earlier schools can intervene, the greater the chance we have of reducing the effects of social inequality.

"If children finish primary school without reaching a basic level of literacy and numeracy they will struggle to access the secondary curriculum and will only fall further behind their peers as they get older."

Mr Bauckham elaborated by saying that the pupil premium has so far proved to be a "powerful lever" in getting helping schools even out standards in education.

One of the things that the extra funding enables is for teachers to invest in strategies they know to be effective, he concluded.