ESFA Update local authorities: 30 March 2022
Published 30 March 2022
Applies to England
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1. Reminder: local authority maintained schools to check the status of their business rates payment process
From 1 April 2022, ESFA will centrally pay the business rates for those local authority maintained schools whose billing authority is implementing the new national non-domestic rates (NNDR) payment process. This means local authority maintained schools in those areas should not pay the 2022 to 2023 business rates bill to the billing authority.
You can check the NNDR payment process your billing authority is implementing. We recommend you check this before making payment to avoid any confusion and duplicate payments.
If your billing authority is continuing with the existing NNDR payment arrangements, local authority maintained schools should continue to pay the rates bill for 2022 to 2023 as per the previous year’s arrangements.
2. Information: the consistent financial reporting framework for 2022 to 2023 is now published
We have published the consistent financial reporting framework 2022 to 2023.
The framework provides guidance for schools about collecting information about their income and expenditure by financial year.
3. Information: update to the Schools causing concern guidance
The Department for Education has published an update to the Schools causing concern guidance. This update incorporates those changes to Chapter 5, on local authority duties relating to school performance, as previously set out in the government response to the consultation on ‘reforming how local authorities’ school improvement functions are funded’ published on 11 January 2022.
4. Information: the 16 to 19 tuition fund guidance for academic year 2022 to 2023 is now available
The 16 to 19 tuition fund guidance for academic year 2022 to 2023 is now published on GOV.UK.
Changes for academic year 2022 to 2023 include:
- more flexibility to allow more students to benefit from the funding an automatic renewal process for institutions who received 16 to 19 tuition funding in 2021 to 2022
- the requirement to publish a statement of intent on how the funding will be delivered to be replaced with the submission of an end of year financial report.
5. Information: 16 to 19 funding guidance
We have published the 16 to 19 rates and formula and 16 to 19 funding regulations guidance today.
You will find the changes for the year in the what’s new sections. Changes include:
- increased national funding rates for 2022 to 2023 as confirmed in December
- updated advice to set out the small number of circumstances where planned hours must be adjusted after the initial 6-week attendance period has passed
- confirmation that funding repeat studies will revert to our usual resit and retake policy. This means treating COVID-19, where it has caused severe disruption to a student relative to their peers, like any other exceptional circumstance outside the control of the student or institution.
6. Information: schools supplementary grant 2022 to 2023
The schools supplementary grant will be paid to mainstream schools and academies in the 2022 to 2023 financial year to provide support for the costs of the Health and Social Care Levy and wider costs.
You can read the methodology and more information about eligibility on schools supplementary grant 2022 to 2023.
6.1 Payment schedule
| Paid to | Payment 1 (to cover April 2022 – August 2022) | Payment 2 (to cover September 2022 – March 2023) |
|---|---|---|
| Local authorities (to be paid to maintained schools) | May 2022 | October 2022 |
| Academies | June 2022 | November 2022 |
As academies follow an academic year rather than a financial year, an additional payment will be made to academies to cover April to August 2023 in advance of the schools supplementary grant being rolled into the academies’ core budget allocations through the NFF. This will be allocated using the same rates and pupil numbers as the 2023 to 2023 grant.
Final allocations will be published in May 2022, We have published indicative allocations at local authority level along with a calculator tool to help schools estimate their allocations.
7. Information: adult funding allocations for the 2022 to 2023 funding year
This week we expect to issue allocations for the 2022 to 2023 funding year. These will include:
- ESFA funded adult education budget (AEB) including National Skills Fund level 3 adult offer
- 19 to 24 traineeships
- 16 to 18 traineeships (for providers without 16 to 19 funding)
- advanced learner loan facilities and bursaries
These allocations will exclude 16 to 18 traineeships awarded through the recent market entry process which will be covered at a later date.
As part of these allocations, we can confirm AEB procured contract for services will be extended into 2022 to 2023 for one year. We will communicate future arrangements for these contracts in due course and more information will be provided in the technical guidance.
Our timeline explains when you can expect information from us. We will publish our technical guidance for 2022 to 2023 at the same time as issuing allocations. This will help you understand how we have calculated your allocation.
Please make sure you have access to Manage your education and skills funding so that you can view your allocation statement. You can request a new role through the Identity and Access Management Service or by asking your organisation’s super user.
Contract authorisers and/or managers will receive an email confirming when your allocation statement is available to view.
8. Information: 2022 to 2023 student financial support scheme guides published
We have published student financial support scheme guides for the 2022 to 2023 academic year for:
- 16 to 19 Bursary Fund
- Free meals in further education
- Residential Bursary Fund
- Residential Support Scheme
We ask that institutions review the updated guides and remind themselves of the funding rules which apply to each scheme to ensure their processes reflect them.
For the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund in particular, institutions must remember that they should not award any student a fixed or flat rate of funding without assessing the actual needs the student has. The guide includes a summary of key points for institutions to consider when administering the bursary fund.
9. Information: National Funding Formula consultation response
DfE has published its response to the completing our reforms of the National Funding Formula (NFF) consultation. The response confirms the Government’s long-standing ambition that all mainstream schools funding would be allocated based on a single national formula, replacing the current system where local authorities allocate funding.
The consultation response confirms that we will:
- bring forward legislation to move to allocate funding directly through a single national funding formula
- require local authorities to move their factor values a minimum of 10% closer to the NFF in 2023 to 2024 as part of a ‘smooth’ transition to a direct NFF
- continue the separate funding cycles for maintained schools and academies
- introduce new transparency requirements for MAT pooling
- review services funding through the ongoing responsibilities element of the central school services block (CSSB) while continuing with a legacy grant for unavoidable historic commitment costs.
We will come back to the sector for a further consultation on the direct NFF, focussing on our approach to growing schools, falling rolls, and premises funding in spring 2022.
10. Information: gas and electricity contracts
The energy market remains volatile with high prices. This can impact on all sectors, including education. We recommend you do not allow your existing contracts to expire as buying energy out of contract is more expensive. Contact your current supplier to discuss a contract extension if necessary.
DfE approved energy framework suppliers are available to provide renewal quotes for schools and colleges.
Cabinet Office has just issued advice for public bodies with contracts with suppliers from Russia and Belarus. This advises you to:
- identify any contracts where the prime contractor is a Russian or Belarusian supplier
- where a Russian or Belarusian prime contractor is identified, consider terminating that contract in accordance with the terms of the contract, i.e. following a legally compliant process
- only proceed to terminate a contract if an alternative supplier can be sourced in line with value for money, affordability and with minimal disruption to public services
11. Information: your invite to the Schools and Academies Show, 27 April
You are invited to join us at the Schools and Academies Show, London Excel on 27 April.
We’ve worked with the organisers to put together a full programme of speakers and workshops for this free face-to-face event.
Come along and speak directly to teams from ESFA and DfE in the Government Education Village and join one of our short information sessions or workshops.
Register now. Registration is free for schools, multi-academy trusts and the wider public sector.
12. Your feedback: preventing sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools
DfE, in association with Brook, have launched a survey to understand what support teachers need to deliver high quality relationships and sex education.
Complete the survey by 3 April and get 25% off Brook’s expert on demand training.
13. Your feedback: Research into workforce disability data in schools
Are you interested in taking part in research around workforce reporting in schools? Each year, schools are asked to provide information on the number of teachers that record themselves as disabled in the School Workforce Census. However, in the last census, disability data was not submitted by schools for 52 per cent of teachers.
The Department for Education (DfE) is very keen to hear from those within schools and trusts responsible for collecting school staff disability data. This research will help DfE understand how schools currently collect disability data and identify ways this process can be more effective and user-friendly.
If you are interested in participating and/or would like to learn more ahead of deciding, please contact the researchers: dwdstudy@bmgresearch.com.
Alternatively, please go to: http://disabilityresearch-opt-in.co.uk/ to take part.