Coronavirus (COVID-19) mass testing funding for schools and colleges: exceptional costs guidance (updated January 2022)
Updated 26 July 2022
Applies to England
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1. Introduction
You can now claim for premises-related exceptional costs to support coronavirus (COVID-19) mass testing carried out between 4 and 14 January 2022.
These instructions are for:
- secondary and all through maintained schools, academies and free schools
- 16 to 19 academies and maintained schools
- maintained special schools, and special academies and free schools
- non-maintained special schools
- pupil referral units
- alternative provision academies with secondary age pupils, including hospital schools
- further education colleges
- sixth form colleges
- special post-16 institutions
Registered independent special schools and independent schools delivering alternative provision are also eligible to submit claims where they have pupils whose placements are funded from local authorities’ high needs budgets.
Claims can only be made at individual institution level.
These instructions are to help you claim exceptional costs related to coronavirus (COVID-19) mass testing by submitting your claim via email.
Claims should only be made by eligible schools and colleges, as stated above, and in the Coronavirus (COVID-19) national testing programme: conditions of grant from August 2021 for premises-related exceptional costs.
Please note, revised conditions of grant will be issued shortly.
1.1 Allocations
Allocations will be published in due course. For an indicative estimate of the value of your allocation, please refer to the Autumn 2021 workforce planning tool.
The tool assists you to estimate your allocation for the period from the end of the Christmas holiday to February 2022 half term. The expectation is that home testing will mean there is a minimal need for onsite testing after 14 January 2022 and no additional premises costs after that date.
1.2 Exceptional costs covered by the fund
We understand this is a very challenging time for schools and colleges.
We encourage all schools and colleges to continue to manage their budgets in the most effective way possible, and to redirect their existing resources to best support all their pupils, particularly vulnerable children, and children of critical workers.
We’ve identified areas where we believe it is most likely that schools and colleges may have faced exceptional premises costs, because of the coronavirus (COVID-19) national testing programme.
Premises-related costs
Claims can be made for unavoidable additional premises costs incurred for the period from 4 to 14 January 2022 if, in accordance with the published guidance, it was necessary to:
- hire additional space at external premises (such as a church hall or community centre)
- make temporary infrastructural changes (such as hiring a marquee, portacabin or similar temporary accommodation to create additional space on site)
- adapt existing spaces (such as temporary flooring that is capable of being cleaned with appropriate products)
Schools and colleges are expected to have identified the most cost-effective adaptations, without which testing could not have been conducted in accordance with the procedures outlined in the shared guidance.
Schools and colleges will need to identify which category the claim relates to, and supply documentary evidence of the costs being claimed, such as a copy of an invoice.
Exceptional costs that fall outside of these categories are not in scope for this fund.
Premises claims should not be made for:
- items provided by Test and Trace to maintain an asymptomatic testing site (ATS), such as personal protective equipment (PPE) and hand sanitiser.
- costs incurred that are not specifically required for the delivery of testing such as catering equipment, rope/belt barriers, maintenance and servicing costs, additional IT equipment or the installation of security systems
- costs incurred because of testing exceeding the recommended level of 1 test per pupil/student on return to school/college
- workforce costs
- cleaning, waste disposal or incidental materials such as stationery and signage which are covered by the allocation, as stated in the conditions of grant
1.3 Funding limits
The minimum amount is £250 per claim. We will not pay costs where the amount falls beneath this value.
Example A
| Item | Cost in £ |
|---|---|
| Hire of additional space | £245 |
| Temporary infrastructural change | £0 |
| Adapting existing spaces | £0 |
| Total costs | £245 |
| Eligible costs | £0 |
In this scenario, we would not accept this claim as the amount claimed falls below the £250 threshold.
Example B
| Item | Cost in £ |
|---|---|
| Hire of additional space | £200 |
| Temporary infrastructural change | £100 |
| Adapting existing spaces | £0 |
| Total costs | £300 |
| Eligible costs | £300 |
In this scenario, we would pay the £300 premises costs (subject to verification). Evidence provided must support the costs claimed.
Example C
| Item | Cost in £ |
|---|---|
| Hire of additional space | £145 |
| Temporary infrastructural change | £200 |
| Adapting existing spaces | £300 |
| Total costs | £645 |
| Eligible costs | £645 |
In this scenario, we would pay £645 premises costs (subject to verification) as the total claim meets the £250 threshold. Evidence provided must support the costs claimed.
2. When to claim
The deadline for submitting your claim for premises costs related to coronavirus (COVID-19) mass testing is 11:59pm on 20 February 2022.
It will not be possible to grant any extensions to the deadline.
3. Accessing the claim form
To request a claim form you should email GrantPayments.ESFA@education.gov.uk with the subject ‘Mass testing January 2022 claims’ and provide your institution name and UKPRN and you will be issued with a form to complete and submit.
3.1 Before you start
Before you start the claims process, please ensure that you:
- read the accompanying published guidance in full (this document)
- are an eligible institution
- have details of the any additional costs relating to premises for the period 4 January 2022 to 14 January 2022
- have access to supporting evidence required to substantiate your claim. This evidence will need to be uploaded as part of the claim submission process and includes but is not limited to:
- invoices
- other supporting documentation - a document or spreadsheet listing the items is insufficient on its own, but may be included to clarify other evidence such as an invoice with no useful description.
4. Completing the form
On request, we will send you an MS Excel spreadsheet for you to complete with the details of your claim and then return to us, along with your evidence, within the claim window. The following information is required so we can assess your claim.
4.1 Your details
You will be asked to provide the UKPRN (cell G11), name (cell G13) and address (cell G15) of the institution you are claiming for; each claim must relate to a single institution.
You will also need to provide the name (cell G20) and email address (cell G22) of the person submitting the claim so that we can contact you.
4.2 Premises costs
Payments will only be made against claims which include eligible costs.
If you are unsure which costs are eligible, please review the published guidance.
The amount claimed is split into 3 sections which all relate to premises costs incurred between 4 and 14 January 2022.
The first cost type covers situations where you needed to hire additional space at an external premises (such as a church hall or community centre).
The second cost type covers situations where temporary infrastructural changes were required to create additional space to deliver testing (such as hiring a marquee or portacabin).
The third cost type covers situations where you needed to adapt an existing space in order to deliver testing (such as installing temporary hard flooring).
You should enter the relevant amount on the form against the most appropriate category or categories noting the minimum level for a total claim. Claims must include an amount against at least one category.
Costs for each category should be entered into the following cells:
- F27 – costs for hiring additional external space
- F29 – costs for temporary infrastructural changes
- F31 – costs for adapting existing space
The combined premises costs must be £250 or more (see cell F33).
If you are making a claim here but did not do so in either of the previous 2 claim windows, we will ask you for a brief explanation of how your circumstances have changed to make this necessary now in cell B39.
We would expect claims to reflect costs excluding VAT and for this to be reclaimed separately. Where eligible establishments are unable to reclaim VAT then it can be included in the costs and you will be asked to indicate if it has and, if so, to confirm you are unable to reclaim it (cells A51 and A53).
Claims for premises costs for purposes other than delivering testing (for example, to create additional teaching space or office space, etc.) within the eligible period will not be accepted.
4.3 Submitting evidence
This is likely to be an invoice, receipt or other supporting documentation. If you are only claiming part of the costs detailed on the evidence you attach, you should explain in your email how you have arrived at the amount you are claiming.
Spreadsheets or other lists of costs are not sufficient evidence on their own and, if attached, should be accompanied by the appropriate invoices, receipts, etc.
4.4 Declarations
By submitting a claim you are certifying:
- I have the authority to submit a claim for this institution and I understand that as a recipient of grant funding the school or college is responsible for protecting public money
- the details I have entered in this claim are correct and accurate, relate only to premises costs associated with Mass Testing in accordance with the guidance published by DfE and ESFA and will not duplicate any financial support provided from other sources to cover the same costs
- that all claimed premises costs were incurred during the testing period (between 4 and 14 January 2022) for all pupils/students returning to school/college after the Christmas 2021 holiday.
4.5 Confirmation
When we receive your claim, we will acknowledge receipt as soon as possible. Once the claim window closes on 20 February 2022, we will assess all of the claims received and may write out to you again if your claim form contains errors, is incomplete, evidence is missing or if any clarification or further information is required.
5. Enquiries
If you’ve read this guidance and have any questions about the coronavirus (COVID-19) mass testing funding for schools and colleges exceptional costs fund or how to complete the form, please use our ESFA enquiry form.
When completing the enquiry form, select ‘other’ as your query type.