Standard

10: Training (HTML)

Updated 4 December 2024

Important note

• This guidance applies only to general grants made by departments and their arm’s length bodies (ALBs) using Exchequer funding. It does not apply to formula grants or grant in aid. Managing Public Money and local guidance within government grant making organisations is applicable to those categories, and minimum requirements may be developed in future.
• Organisations’ primary concern when administering grants is to have due regard to the ‘Grants Functional Standard’ (GovS 015) and the key documents referred to within it including Managing Public Money. Nothing in this guidance is intended to contradict or supersede these. Furthermore, this guidance is not intended to be an additional spending control - departments retain accountability for decisions on grant expenditure.
• This guidance should be read in conjunction with the wider set of minimum requirements guidance documents (including the introduction). Further information and tools supporting this guidance can be found online through the grants Centre of Excellence (CoE). Further references and resources are highlighted throughout. It should also be read alongside organisations’ internal guidance, where available, which will provide the departmental policy context.
• This guidance should be approached on a ‘comply or explain’ basis. It is important to consider flexibility and proportionality in adhering to the minimum requirements. As such there may be some specific instances where the requirements may not be met in full. In these instances, appropriate justification should be recorded within the business case or equivalent approval documents.

Minimum Requirement

All those involved in the development and administration of grant awards should undertake core training in grant management best practice.

Purpose

Minimum Requirement Ten: the training and guidance for general grants referenced in this document is aimed at ensuring that anyone involved in the design, development and administration of government general grants is competent and properly equipped to undertake their role effectively. The appropriate level of training and support should be made available to all staff, covering the fundamental principles of grant making, including optimising value for money and identifying and managing risk, including fraud risk.

Grants Functional Standard: Key References

Mandatory requirements are defined by the word shall in the grants functional standard. The shall statements related to this minimum requirement have been extracted from the standard and are set out below. Please note: in some cases, the information has been paraphrased for conciseness - refer to the standard itself for the full version.

Area	Requirement(s)	Context	Reference	Pag e
Supporting practices: Training	In performing their roles, and in meeting this standard, those undertaking grant management should have the appropriate level of support and shall have completed basic training to perform their role effectively.	Such training should include knowledge of applicable sources of further guidance and the identification of empowering legislation underpinning individual grant schemes. Note: An eLearning awareness package including: Introduction to Managing Government General Grants and related bite sized modules, designed to help grant managers comply with the above training requirement, is available on both Civil Service Learning and the Government Commercial College platform.	6.7 Training Also refer to: GovS003, Human resources.	21

Overview

1. Anyone involved in the design, development and administration of government grant funding should be competent and experienced and be given the appropriate level of training and support by their organisation to reach that position, in order that they are able to perform their role effectively. Grants practitioners should be familiar with the mandatory and non-mandatory aspects of the Grants Functional Standard and accompanying minimum requirements for general grants, and be aware of other relevant resources of information and guidance, including those referred to within the minimum requirement guidance documents. Grants practitioners are expected to be registered on and make regular use of the grants Centre of Excellence (CoE), in order to access the latest policy updates, training, guidance, templates and other resources.

2. The Senior Officer Responsible (SOR) for a grant scheme should ensure that their team has the required capability and access to training and support (for further information refer to Minimum Requirement One: Senior Officer Responsible for a Grant). This includes a responsibility to engage with the Government Grants Management Function’s (GGMF) capability offer. Grant making organisations should decide on the training appropriate for the different roles within their organisation, based on their people’s responsibilities and existing knowledge and experience. They should draw on existing training resources available through the Grants Capability page on the grants Centre of Excellence (CoE), and from other sources across government, such as the Commercial College and Finance Academy, in addition to guidance and training available within their organisation.^{[footnote 1]}

Government Grant Management Function, Grants Awareness Programme

3. The GGMF’s grants awareness programme is an eLearning package, made up of bite sized modules, designed to help practitioners to achieve greater basic awareness of the key stages, processes and requirements involved in design, development and administration of government general grants, and to ensure that all grants practitioners are fully up to date with the latest policy developments. This programme is set at the awareness level, and as such is aimed at new or inexperienced grants practitioners, however, it is a requirement that anyone involved in grants administration, shall complete this programme of eLearning or an equivalent training package. Details of how to access the package can be found on the capability page on the grants Centre of Excellence and the package is accessible via Government Campus and the Government Commercial College.

4. To support practitioners to build their capability in grant making, the GGMF has developed, in collaboration with grant making organisations, a central learning and development offer, designed to provide grant practitioners with essential training in the core competencies required for effective grants management. The GGMF’s offer is underpinned by the Grants Competency Framework (available to download via the Centre of Excellence). The GGMF’s training offer is aligned to the levels set out within the framework.

5. After completing the GGMF’s grants awareness programme, it is strongly recommended that all those involved in grant making should use the framework and Capability Self-Assessment Tool to assess and track their development and plan their learning journey, iucluding considering completion of the Grants Licence to Practise (see paragraphs 10-15).

The Grants Competency Framework

6. The Grants Competency Framework underpins the GGMF’s learning and development programme. It is designed around three core roles in grants management, as set out in the Grants Functional Standard:

• Grant Manager;
• Grants Champion; and
• Senior Officer Responsible.

7. The framework defines a set of nine core competencies specific to the design, development and administration of government general grants, together with 5- enabling competencies. There are four levels of ability described within the framework:

• awareness;
• working;
• skilled and
• expert.

8. The framework provides a common understanding of the knowledge, skills, behaviours and networks expected of grant practitioners, at all levels. The diagram below provides a high-level overview of the framework:

9. Once a grant practitioner has completed the grants awareness programme and used the framework and self-assessment tool to determine the level that they are at they should then consider enrolling to commence their journey towards accreditation, via the GGMF’s Licence to Practise programme.

Grants Licence to Practise Programme

10. The Grants Licence to Practise (LtP) programme builds on the knowledge gained from the awareness programme. With learning, ideally spread across several months, it provides a comprehensive overview of the design, development and administration of government general grants, including the Functional Standard and minimum requirements and how they should be applied throughout the grants lifecycle. The LtP covers the essential knowledge and behaviours required for effective grants management, with a focus on practical skills, networking and peer-to- peer learning.

11. This programme includes a five-day residential training course, aimed primarily at - but not restricted to - new and inexperienced grants practitioners, which allows individuals to learn practical skills and knowledge in an open and safe learning environment, as well as providing an opportunity for peer-to-peer networking. Once completed, and when learners feel ready, they will then complete a formal assessment and be awarded their Licence to Practise accreditation in government general grant making.

12. Organisations are responsible for the collective capability of their grant practitioners. They should consider what further learning and development practices are required, alongside formal training, to support practitioners to apply, build-on and embed their learning and capability long-term. This could involve different methods and forms of learning, which may include, for example:

• training courses;
• coaching/ mentoring;
• webinars; and
• online learning.

13. Further learning might also include sharing best practice techniques, thoughts and ideas, focused on helping an individual to implement and embed their learning in their working environment.

14. Where an individual is already qualified via a relevant profession, for example, finance, commercial or audit, there is still value to be gained from them undertaking grants-specific awareness training, for example, to help commercial specialists understand the key differences between contract procurement and grants administration. Basic grants training may also be advantageous for those in other professions who have not had prior, direct experience of grant making.

15. Grantmakers should engage with their departmental grants champion to discuss what assessment has been made of their training needs and available resources.

Training for the Senior Officer Responsible (SOR) for a Grant

16. A bespoke training package is available for SORs, focused on the role and responsibilities, linked to the SOR letter (see Minimum Requirement One: Senior Officer Responsible for a Grant). This training is strongly recommended for all SORs, to ensure they are up to date with the latest requirements for a senior leadership role in government grant making. For SORs that are new to grant making, the SOR module can be included within an individual’s broader learner journey, preferably as part of undertaking the GGMF’s awareness eLearning package.

Government Grants Capability

17. The Government Grants Capability Team is developing a suite of bespoke training products designed to support learning and development in relation to grant management. The training offer can be found on the grants Centre of Excellence (CoE); it provides details of the Government Grants Awareness Programme, Grants Competency Framework, Grants Capability Self-Assessment Tool, and the Grants License to Practise, plus additional related training resources for grants practitioners.

18. The suite of training products includes web-based resources: accessed through Government Campus and the Government Commercial College. Training modules have been produced in collaboration with grant practitioners across government, from departments and their grant making arm’s length bodies.

Note: check the training page on the grants Centre of Excellence regularly for updates on training products currently in development.

Further Resources

19. In meeting this minimum requirement, and in addition to the references and resources highlighted earlier in this guidance, organisations may want to consider the following in particular:

• More general eLearning modules available on CSL, which can help to develop skills and knowledge that is useful when managing government grants.
• The grants Centre of Excellence (CoE) contains products and toolkits that can be used to enhance grant knowledge and expertise.

1. Guidance developed by grant making organisations should be fully consistent with, cross-referenced to and up to date with the policies, standards, guidance and training products developed by the GGMF and its Capability Team. ↩