Correspondence

ESFA Update local authorities: 21 April 2021

Published 21 April 2021

This correspondence was withdrawn on 23 December 2022

This has been withdrawn as it’s out of date. Read the latest editions of ESFA Update for the latest news and information.

Applies to England

1. Latest information on coronavirus (COVID-19)

The Department for Education has published guidance about COVID-19 in educational settings for staff, parents and carers, pupils and students on GOV.UK.

Please check GOV.UK regularly for updates.

2. Action: £75 million of grant funding available to take that next step to a low carbon heating future

Phase 2 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme opened on 7 April 2021 with a strong focus on heat decarbonisation to deliver greater carbon emission reductions. Applications are to be submitted through the Salix Finance website.

To be eligible for the scheme, two key criteria must be met in addition to the existing Phase 2 criteria:

• applicants must be using a fossil-fuelled heating system; and
• the heating system in question must be coming to the end of its useful life.

DfEs approved Fusion21 Lot10 education specific framework offers a range of heating systems and renewable technology services from consultancy to design and can provide support to the application stage.

The organisations eligible to apply are the same as for Phase 1 PSDS. These include:

• maintained schools within the state education system, including academies, multi-academy trusts and free schools
• nursery schools maintained by a local authority

£75m of grant funding is available and all projects that receive funding in Phase 2 PSDS must be fully installed and therefore completed before 31 March 2022.

See GOV.UK for more information about the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme.

3. Action: consultation on business rates

DfE has launched a public consultation on a proposal to centralise the payment of national non-domestic rates (NNDR), more commonly known as business rates, for state-funded schools for 5 to 16 year olds. DfE is seeking views on the payment of schools’ business rates directly to billing authorities on behalf of schools and a single reconciliation payment to billing authorities to allow for adjustments before the end of the financial year. We welcome views from state-funded schools, local authorities, billing authorities and any other stakeholders.

The consultation closes on 5 May 2021, please do pass the link on to interested parties.

4. Reminder: the coronavirus (COVID-19) free school meals additional costs online form for schools and colleges is live

The coronavirus (COVID-19) free school meals additional costs online form went live on 7 April 2021.

You can claim eligible costs related to free school meals and free meal additional costs during the period 4 January up to the start of the Easter holidays (as applicable).

The deadline to submit your claim is 23:59 on 4 May 2021.

We have published guidance to help you complete the form.

5. Information: ESFA adult education budget (AEB) funding and performance management rules 2020 to 2021

We have published version 6 of the AEB funding rules and these are the changes.

• as confirmed, we have updated the performance management section about the reconciliation threshold for ESFA grant funded AEB adult skills, including non-formula funded community learning and 19 to 24 traineeships
• we have clarified the rules in the learning support section around the use of the individualised learner record and the earning adjustment statement for claiming costs which exceed the fixed monthly rate
• when qualifications are added to the funding eligibility list for high value courses for school and college leavers and the National Skills Fund level 3 adult offer, they will only become eligible for funding from that publication date. As usual for AEB funding, we will not backdate funding to the start of the academic year or offer, and learners should continue to fund their qualification through their advanced learner loan.

If you have any questions, please contact us using our enquiry form.

6. Information: Schools and Academies Show 27 to 30 April

You are invited to join us at the second online Schools and Academies Show from 27 to 30 April 2021.

We’ve worked with the organisers to put together a programme of speakers and workshops for this virtual event.

You can connect with staff from ESFA and DfE to:

• ask questions via live-chat functionality
• view sessions and roundtables hosted by ESFA and DfE
• set up 1-2-1 private video meetings with members of the teams

Register now to create your own personal agenda.

7. Information: coronavirus (COVID-19) summer schools programme funding

As part of the wider recovery package to support children in catching up on missed face to face learning and development and providing an opportunity to support their mental health and wellbeing, we are providing £200m to enable as many secondary schools as possible to deliver face-to-face summer schools this year.

Schools are free to identify the pupils who would most benefit from summer school. We recommend a focus on incoming year 7 pupils, giving those pupils an opportunity to build a community with their new classmates and teachers and familiarise themselves with their new school environment.

Funding is calculated based on 50% of a school’s year 7 cohort being offered a place on a two-week programme, or 100% of the cohort being offered a week-long programme and equates to £597 per two-week place (£1,791 for pupils in special schools or units and alternative provision).

We have published the coronavirus (COVID-19) summer schools programme funding allocations, which show the available funding for each eligible secondary school in England, based on their numbers of year 7 pupils.

We will shortly ask secondary schools to complete a sign-up form to indicate they intend to take part. We will then ask schools to confirm their plans in June.

Further information is available in our summer schools guidance.

If you have questions, please contact us at: learning.recovery@education.gov.uk.

8. Information: future development of the T Level Transition Programme

It has been fantastic to see the launch of the first T Level Transition Programmes in 32 providers across the country. Over the next 9 months, we will be determining what the final national programme will look like, drawing on this first year of delivery, wider evidence on good practice and working with education specialists, providers, employers and sector stakeholders.

The programme will retain the flexibility to be able to support each student individually and enable them to progress on to a T Level, whilst introducing a degree of consistency to ensure all students are consistently prepared regardless of where they are studying.

Further details on our approach to developing the programme, for September 2022 implementation, are on GOV.UK.

9. Information: the view my financial insights (VMFI) tool is now live for local authorities and maintained schools

We have updated the view my financial insights (VMFI) tool and access is now available for local authorities and maintained schools. The tool provides users with insights into the financial position and performance of their school. It identifies areas that may require further attention and offers guidance and advice on a range of key financial indicators.

The key features of the tool are:

• compare the financial performance of each school in a local authority against the 30 most statistically similar schools, either based on pupil characteristics or building characteristics
• analyse financial performance across 9 cost categories and 33 sub-cost categories
• view the latest commercial resources, frameworks, financial guidance and training available from the DfE to support financial decisions
• create your own set of comparator schools
• the ability to edit your data locally to model different scenarios
• create a high-level view of your integrated curriculum and financial planning (ICFP) metrics

You can find more VMFI information and guidance online and can log into the tool now.

Please click on your preferred date below to register for a training webinar.

• Friday 30 April - 11am to 12pm
• Tuesday 11 May - 12pm to 1pm
• Wednesday 19 May - 2pm to 3pm

10. Action: RPA Members: Crime Resilience Programme Overview Webinars

Willis Towers Watson is providing risk management support for all RPA members through audit, guidance and advice.

As part of the risk management support RPA members are invited to a webinar covering effective management of the risk of criminal activity to premises, assets and personnel and the support that is available to its members.

10.1 Who should attend?

This workshop will be useful for those with:

• responsibilities for the management of premises and the safeguarding of people
• day-to-day management of facilities and assets, which could include Facilities and Business Managers
• risk management responsibilities.

10.2 Webinar dates: (click on the link to register)

• 6 May 2021 – 10:00 to midday
• 20 May 2021 – 10:00 to midday

10.3 Benefits of attending

• Reducing the risk of civil claims and reputational damage
• Protecting the school’s premises and assets
• Managing the risk of business interruption as a result of criminal activity
• Reducing the risk of any incidents in relation to people on site

11. Information: replacement service for TP Online barred list status checks

Please cascade this information to your schools and maintained nursery schools.

From 1 April the Teaching Regulation Agency is offering an additional function within its existing free Employer Access facility that allows schools, early years settings and local authorities, in specific circumstances, to conduct standalone Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) barred list status checks. This will replace the current TP Online service.

This service is not available to supply/recruitment agencies or other organisations that do not meet the requirements in the relevant legislation. These organisations will still be required to undertake an enhanced DBS check with barred list information or use the DBS update service to determine whether a person is barred.

This search should only be used on newly appointed staff who are engaging in regulated activity, pending the receipt of an Enhanced Certificate with Barred List information from the DBS or where an individual has worked in a post in a school or college that brought them into regular contact with children or young persons which ended not more than three months prior to that person’s appointment to the organisation.

For full details of the checks that must be carried out on school and college staff, please refer to Part three of the DfE’s statutory guidance ‘Keeping children safe in education’ (KCSIE).

11.1 Accessing the new service

Schools should have access to Teacher Services – Employer Access – Schools via DfE Sign-In (DSI). Schools authorised to use the service will see the new search functionality upon logging in to Teacher Services – Employer Access – Schools.

Guidance on how to perform a search, and next steps if schools identify a possible match, are available within guidance documents at the Teacher Services – Employer Access – Schools service.

If school users need help using DSI, or need to register for a DSI account, they can access the help page.

Local authorities should have access to Teacher Services – Employer Access – Agent via DSI. Local authority users will see the new search functionality upon logging in to Teacher Services – Employer Access – Agent.

Schools and local authority users should contact Employer.Access@education.gov.uk if they have any further questions about accessing this service.

If schools and local authority users do not have access to this service, please contact: TPonline.REPLACEMENT@education.gov.uk.