Correspondence

ESFA Update further education: 20 November 2024

Published 20 November 2024

Applies to England

Action: Adult skills fund performance management review – December 2024

The Adult skills fund (ASF) performance management request form is now available.

At the performance management review, grant providers with an ASF contract can request:

• a first-time request for ESFA-funded level 3 free courses for jobs, up to the value of £45,000
• top up existing ESFA-funded level 3 free courses for jobs allocation, if it is below £45,000
• an exceptional request for growth on ESFA-funded free courses for jobs, if you do not meet the set criteria from the funding and performance management rules

At the performance management review, service providers with an ASF contract (procured from August 2023) can request:

• an exceptional request for growth on ESFA-funded ASF and free courses for jobs, if you do not meet the set criteria from the funding and performance management rules
• an exceptional request for exemptions from an automatic reduction of your ESFA-funded allocation, if your delivery is below the published threshold

The deadline for submissions is 5pm on Wednesday 4 December 2024.

For further information on the performance review of the adult skills fund, refer to the adult skills fund: funding and performance management rules 2024 to 2025.

Information: Changes to the administration of the Care to Learn and 16 to 19 Bursary fund (defined vulnerable bursary) schemes from the academic year 2025 to 2026

We highlighted in the 2 October ESFA Update that the Care to Learn (C2L) delivery model will change from the 2025 to 2026 academic year.

As a reminder, this means institutions will be responsible for managing C2L applications from students, as you do for other 16 to 19 student support schemes. You will also be responsible for making payments to your students’ childcare providers.

We recognise there are more administration activities for you in managing C2L. We will pay 5% on top of the total amount claimed per student, to contribute to those costs.

There will also be a new arrangement for handling the bursary for defined vulnerable groups funding claims.

You will need to request funding from us when you have completed your assessments for both schemes. We will confirm the dates you need to do this.

We will publish funding rules for the 2 schemes in early April 2025 and continue to provide more information in future ESFA Updates.

If you need any support, use our customer help portal.

You should continue to contact the student bursary support service (SBSS) for all applications, claims and payments relating to the 2024 to 2025 academic year, including any C2L summer retainer applications.

Information: Publication of the 2-part Adults skills fund funding framework

The Adult skills fund funding framework was published on 14 November 2024. This framework does not undermine or replace the funding rules, which is the key document you must use to manage delivery of the non-devolved ESFA Adult skills fund (ASF).

The framework is split into 2 parts.

Part 1 - Guidance on the underlying policy:

This is non-statutory guidance which explains the principles behind the policy decisions on the non-devolved ASF to support adult education providers in understanding governments intention.

This document is for grant-funded public bodies and contract-funded private or charitable organisations in receipt of non-devolved ASF funding. It may also be of interest to all current and future devolved authorities. 

Part 2 - Guidance on operating a devolved portion:

This is non-statutory guidance for devolved areas to support with the navigation of the devolved ASF and provides information and advice relating to situations that can arise as part of operating a devolved budget. Devolved areas are not obligated to follow this guidance.

This document is for use by all current and future devolved areas. It may also be of interest to recipients of Adult skills funding.

Reminder: 2023 to 2024 final reconciliation statements

Reconciliation statements will be available for you to view on Manage your education skills and funding by the end of November 2024. 

This will set out the final position for the 2023 to 2024 funding year and inform the funding that is required to be repaid (if applicable) or over delivery funding that we will pay.

Final reconciliation statements are published following submission of a final funding claim for the following funding streams:

• grant funded – ESFA-funded adult education budget (AEB) (adult skills, community learning, 19 to 24 traineeships and Level 3 free courses for jobs offer)
• grant funded – advanced learner loans bursary (ALLB)

If you are required to repay funds back to us, we will schedule those repayments from December 2024.

Your feedback: Tell us about your experience of our funding service

If you receive ESFA funding, we want to hear about your experience of our service. Please complete this short survey by Friday 29 November 2024. It should take you 5 to 10 minutes to complete. 

We aspire to run an excellent education and skills funding service that gives providers as much certainty as possible. The survey asks whether we deliver:

• certainty on what we pay you and when
• clarity on how to comply with funding rules
• services that are accessible and easy to use
• answers when you have funding-related queries

We will keep your personal data confidential, and your feedback will help us to improve the service.

Events and webinars: New DfE Further Education Provider Dashboard Q&A sessions for colleges or local authority FE providers

• Tuesday 26 November, 2pm to 3pm, Register online.
• Tuesday 3 December, 2pm to 3pm, Register online.