Correspondence

ESFA Update local authorities: 23 October 2024

Updated 28 October 2024

Applies to England

Action: The further education workforce data collection is now open

The further education (FE) workforce data collection opened on Monday 14 October 2024 and will close on Friday 17 January 2025.

This collection will:

• provide a better understanding of the implications of government policy reforms, including their impact on the composition of staff and their specialisms
• provide a greater understanding of contracts and pay in the sector
• reveal skills gaps in the sector

This data gives the department valuable insight into the sector and will help us design effective and impactful policy to support the sector going forwards.

We will be publishing outcomes in 2025, for the benefit of providers and key stakeholders, such as Ofsted and sector representatives.

To access the collection or create an account, use the submit learner data sign in process.

We have released guidance documents for the workforce data collections to support staff who are completing the collections.

You can find outcomes from the previous workforce collection rounds. This would not have been possible without your continued support.

Information: National professional qualification targeted support funding 2023 to 2024 allocations

We have published revised 2023 to 2024 allocations for the targeted support funding for national professional qualifications (NPQs) for participants who started in the 2023 to 2024 academic year. 

This revision now includes eligible participants who were not paid in the June 2024 allocations. We will make a sweep up payment at the end of October 2024 for local authorities and at the beginning of November 2024 for academies, ensuring that all eligible schools and organisations not captured in the summer payment window are paid in year.

We assess eligibility using information provided during registration, including pupil data. For state-funded primary schools with 1 to 150 pupils and state-funded primary schools with more than 150 pupils, funding amounts may vary dependant on the point of registration.

This grant is now closed, and we will make no further payments following the final November payment.

Information: Copyright licences for schools

There were delays this year with the copyright licence fees for the Performing Right Society (PRS) for Music licences. 

The contracts with PRS for Music have now been signed. We will issue a further invoice for payments to local authorities shortly.  

We are distributing an additional £4 million to local authorities to be paid in the 2024 to 2025 financial year, to compensate for the additional cost of the licences, which varies between local authorities.

We will add a further £4 million to the central school services block (CSSB) for the 2025 to 2026 financial year, to be distributed in proportion to the increase in local authorities’ copyright licence bills. Local authorities can find out what their allocation is through the dedicated schools grant webpage and selecting the ‘DSG: 2024 to 2025 uplift for the cost of copyright licences’ spreadsheet.

Information: 16 to 19 and adult revenue funding allocations for 2024 to 2025

We have published the 16 to 19 revenue funding allocations for the academic year 2024 to 2025.

The publication covers schools, academies and further education institutions funded by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) for 16 to 19 year olds, and 19 to 25 year olds with an education, health and care (EHC) plan.

We have also published the adult funding allocations for the academic year 2024 to 2025 for training providers.

The publication covers the funding values for colleges, training organisations and employers with an adult skills funding, apprenticeship carry in or advanced learner loan contract for 2024 to 2025.

We publish both sets of allocations data annually in the interests of transparency.

Information: Update on the 2024 autumn term early years data collection

The funding for the new working parents entitlements for 2-year-olds and under will be funded on a termly basis, as announced in our  early years funding termly data collection in 2024 guidance.

This autumn, we are collecting additional data about the early years entitlement for families receiving specific forms of additional support and children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). This is being collected for policy monitoring purposes as set out in the early years data collection for the 2024 to 2025 financial year guidance.

The form for the 2024 autumn data return can be accessed in the ‘Accessing the form’ section of the ‘How to submit your data using the early years entitlements digital form’ guidance.

Local authorities will need to submit data for the 2024 autumn term count week, which is week commencing Monday 4 November 2024.

The deadline to submit this data is Friday 6 December 2024.

Information: PE and sport premium allocations and conditions of grant for 2024 to 2025 academic year

We have published the 2024 to 2025 allocations for PE and sport premium on the view latest funding service.

Reminder: Final funding claim submission for 2023 to 2024 by Friday 25 October 2024

The final funding claim window opened at 9am on Tuesday 22 October 2024. 

Please submit your final funding claim by 5pm on Friday 25 October 2024. The claim form will be available on submit learner data. The funding claims user guide is available to help you complete the form. 

You will need to submit a claim if you receive funds through these grant funded contracts:  

• ESFA funded adult education budget (adult skills, community learning, 19 to 24 traineeships and level 3 free courses for jobs offer) 
• advanced learner loans bursary

If you have any exceptional adjustments to enter on the claim form, you will require prior agreement by ESFA. The claim should be supported by relevant evidence which ESFA may request. Any unauthorised exceptional adjustments will be disallowed.

16 to 19 allocation

The 16 to 19 delivery section of the funding claim will be included in the final funding claim for your principal or delegated authority to sign off.

Providers with only a 16 to 19 allocation do not need to submit a funding claim at R14 but they do need to sign the R14 form digitally on manage your education and skills funding by 5pm on Tuesday 29 October 2024. 

Sign your claim

Your principal or delegated authority must sign your claim digitally on manage your education and skills funding by 5pm on Tuesday 29 October 2024. 

Once you have submitted your final funding claim on submit learner data, you will also be able to view it on manage your education and skills funding.

Webinar: Mock trial – risk protection arrangement (RPA) members only

Tuesday 12 November 2024, 9am to midday – Register online.