16 to 19 funding: allocations

16 to 19 funding allocations

The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) funds schools, academies, colleges and independent learning providers. We calculate funding using the 16 to 19 national funding formula.

Funding allocationsThe areformula is driven by student recruitment and the funding formula includes factors thatwhich reflect student retention, higher cost subjects, disadvantaged students and area costs. The funding education for 16 to 19 year olds page includes further information about each element within the 16 to 19 national funding formula.

WeFunding supplement the funding calculated using the 16national to 19 funding formula withis also supplemented by additional funding for high needs students, and funding thatwhich provides financial support to students to help with their education costs.

16 to 19 funding information for academic year 20242023 to 20252024

We’ve published details on the key changes to funding for 20242023 to 20252024. This includes the extra funding announced in July 2023.

We will update our supporting documents and issue revised statements in September 2023 so institutions can see their revised funding allocations for academic year 2023 to 2024.

Allocations timeline

We have extended our allocations timeline for academic year 2023 to 2024 to account for the revised statements due to the extra funding.

We will publish updates to the timeline as we deliver funding allocations. Please read the latest news column on the timeline for regular updates.

Month	Activity	Latest news
December 20232022	6 December 20232022 is the individualised learner record (the ILR) R04 R04 deadline. This is the first 16 to 19 data return for 20232022 to 2024.2023.	The R04 data return is now closed.
December 20232022	Publication of dedicated schools grant schools block and high needs block allocations for 20242023 to 20252024 (prior to academy recoupment).	We have published this information here.
January 20242023	PublicationWe ofwill start to publish guidance to support funding allocations. We will issue allocation calculation toolkits containing funding factors to colleges, schools and academies. We will publish outcomes of the high needs place change process for 20242023 to 2025.2024.	We have now shared ACT files with institutions via DocX. We have now published the allocation calculation toolkits and the high needs place change process.
February 20242023	6 February 20242023 is the ILR R06 deadline.	The R06During datathe returnmonth, iswe nowexpect closed.
Februaryto 2024	Westart willissuing issueallocations, supportingincluding guidancehigh andneeds allocationplace calculationnumbers, toolkitsto containingmost fundingschool factorssixth toforms, academies, special academies, colleges and higher education institutions.	The R06 data return is now closed.
March 20242023	We will begin to issue allocations to all institutionsspecial post-16 institutions, non-maintained special schools and publishindependent supportinglearning guidance.providers. We aimwill toalso issue allany remaining allocations byto theschool endsixth offorms, theacademies month.and colleges.	Allocations issued by 31 March.
April 20242023	The business case deadline is 3028 April 20242023 for all institutions to return any business cases in relation to a significant data error or exceptional circumstances affecting their allocation. This excludes institutions in scope of the high needs place change process because we openedwill open a 2-week window for enquiries in January 2024.2023.	The business cases deadline has now passed.
May/June 20242023	WeIn May, we will review and process business cases received by the deadline with full and complete information and communicate these outcomes by the end of June 2024.2023.	We have reviewed and communicated business case decisions where we received information by the deadline.
July/August 20242023	We will issue funding agreements/contracts to institutions either directly or through the lead contact. Agreements/contracts signed and returned by funded organisation.	Funding agreements/contracts issued by end the of August.
August/September 20242023	We will make the first paymentpayment, based on the allocation statements issued during February and March 2023, to local authorities (in respect of schools with sixth forms) and directly to academies, colleges and other institutions.	First payments to be made to academies in September. All other institutions received their first payments in August.
September 2023	We will start to issue allocation statements showing revisions due to funding rates, PCW, DB2 and care leavers changes.	Revised allocation statements issued by 8 September.
October 2023	This will be the first payment to include the funding changes, as shown in your allocation statements issued in September 2023.

Business cases for major data errors

You

Update shouldto onlybusiness case deadlines and communicating outcomes

When to submit a business casescase

For ifT youLevel haveallocations

Business madecases areceived significantwith errorfull ininformation yourbefore 1621 July 2023:

• we aim to 19communicate schoolsoutcomes censusfor orstraightforward ILRcases data.by Thisthe shouldend beof bySeptember exception2023

• complex cases can take longer to investigate, and onlywe afterwill youcommunicate haveoutcomes for these as soon as possible

We will still consider cases received yourafter funding21 allocationJuly statement.2023 or with missing information and we will communicate outcomes as soon as possible.

Timelines

For whenall submittingother a16 businessto case

19 allocations

Cases received with full information before 3028 April 2024:2023:

• we aim to communicate outcomes for straightforward cases by the end of JuneMay 20242023
• complex cases can take longer to investigateinvestigate, and we aim to communicate outcomes for these before the end of JulyJune 20242023

Cases received after 3028 April 20242023 or thosewith thatmissing require further information:

• we will consider cases with missing information or those received after 28 April 2023
• we aim to let you know the outcomes as soon as we are able, but for some of the more complex or late cases you might receive decisions from July 20242023 onwards
• for these cases, we will action any adjustment to your allocation will be actioned as a contract variation

You should only submit business cases where you have made a significant error in your 16 to 19 schools census or individualised learner record (ILR) data. This should be by exception and only after you have received your funding allocation statement.

When not to submit a case

This process does not cover business cases for high needs place funding for institutions that are within scope of the high needs place change notification process.

For institutions returning the ILR, we will not accept business cases where an error in the 20222021 to 20232022 R04 (or R46) has reduced the ratio for the 20242023 to 20252024 allocation. This is because any such error will have also resulted in an equivalent increase in the 20232022 to 20242023 allocation.

How to submit a case

You mustshould contact us usingthrough our online enquiry form, clearly stating the nature of your business case. The head of institution must authorise all business cases.

Please do not upload business cases to the Document exchangeExchange untilwithout youfirst havesubmitting completed an online enquiry form becauseas wethese will not seebe them.retrieved automatically.

When appropriate, we will send you a pre-populated template afterwhen you contact us to make sure we have all the evidence we need.

We willExtracts not accept:

• extracts from allocation calculation toolkits with associated corrections
• or templates that have been rolled forward from previous years

business cases will not be accepted. Where a template is required the template for the current year must be completed.

Thresholds for business casescase

We apply standard minimum thresholds to decide whether we will consider a case.

For cases affecting T Level allocations:

• wewe’ll will consider cases where data errors had an impact on 5 or more T Level students

For cases affecting lagged student numbers, full-time/part-time split, funding factors and the maths and English condition of funding:

• an overall impact of 5%2.5% on total programme funding or £100,000,£50,000, whichever is lower. Total programme funding refers to the coreelements programme funding (including any condition of funding adjustment) as outlined in ‘Figure 1: 16 to 19 funding formula’ in the 16 to 19 funding: how it works guidance

For cases not covered above:

• an overall impact of 5%2.5% of the funding related to that element
• for example: if the case relates to thelevel high3 valueprogramme coursesmaths premium,and English, the 5%2.5% would be in relation to the total highfunding valuefor courseslevel premium3 fundingprogramme maths and English payment

WeThe have maintained the reduced T Level threshold for business cases is new for academic year 2023 to 2024. We have maintained the other reduced thresholds for the 2023 to 2024 academic year to 2025.reflect the increased pressures on budgets from cost of living and other continuing exceptional circumstances. Higher thresholds may apply for future academic years.

Data sources

Data sources for 16 to 19 and post-16 high needs funding for academic year 20242023 to 20252024

This section sets out the methods we will use to determine the number of students attracting funding in 20242023 to 2025.2024. We have set this out by institution type.

Please note from academic year 20242023 to 20252024 we will include all T Level data in the calculation of funding factors.

Schools,School, academies, free schools, studio schools, university technical colleges

Lagged

• lagged numbers based on 20232022 to 20242023 students in the autumn 20232022 census. We fund some academies on estimated numbers where their funding agreement states this.
  this

Further education ( FE) colleges, colleges, some other FE or higher education institutions

We

• we take the number of eligible students with a reference date of 1 November 20232022 based on R04 (2023(2022 to 2024).

  2023). We multiply this by the ratio of 1 November to all-year student numbers based on R04 (2022(2021 to 2023)2022) and the R14 return for that year.

  We compare this figure with the student numbers calculated from R06 (2023(2022 to 2024),2023), both the year-to-date (as at 1 February) figure and the number recruited by 1 November (R46) to determine the final student number methodology thatto webe willused, use: R04 multiplied by the ratio, R46 multiplied by the ratio or R06.

  R06

Independent learning providers

Depending

• depending on the profile of recruitment for the individual provider, we will either use:
  1. use 1) a 12-month rolling figure for February 20232022 to January 20242023 based on R14 (2022(2021 to 2023)2022) and R06 (2023(2022 to 2024)2023) data
  2. data, 2) the same approach as set out above for FE colleges, or
  3. 3) the average of approaches 11) and 22)

There may be a delay in issuing allocations for institutions where we use R06 data.

Local authorities, some other FE institutions

If

• where usingthe use of in-year data is not appropriate, we will use a full year figure based on R14 (2022(2021 to 2023).
  2022)

Maintained special schools

We

• we allocate post-16 high needs place funding directly to local authorities. Local authorities then determine the post-16 place funding to allocate to individual maintained special schools.
  schools

Special academies

We

• we use published 20232022 to 20242023 academic year high needs place numbers, revised by place changes notified to ESFA by local authorities in November 2023.
  2022

Special post-16 institutions (SPI)

We

• we will allocate programme funding (element 1) and high needs funding (element 2) using counts of valid students from 20232022 to 2024 2023 ILR R06 data returns. We will use a reference date of 1 February 2024.
  2023

Lagged approach

Note that for those institutions normally subject to lagged funding, the lagged approach does not apply where there is a material change in the volume of provision offered by the institution. In those cases, we remove the institution from the lagged approachapproach, and we calculate funded student numbers are calculated as set out in the funding rates and formula guidance.

Formula elements

These are the methods we will use to determine the other formula elements for institutions with 16 to 19 funding in 20242023 to 2025.2024.

Data sources for formula elements/Institutionelements Institution type	Institutions making ILR return	Institutions making census return	Institutions with no historical data
Retention/Size of programme/Programmeprogramme/ programme cost weighting/Disadvantage blockBlock 2 instances/High value courses premium and EnglishL3 and maths fundingand English	R14 20222021 to 20232022	Autumn census 20232022 (end-year 20222021 to 20232022 data)	National average for institution type
Disadvantage block 1 factor/instances and discretionaryDiscretionary bursaryBursary instances	R14 20222021 to 20232022	Autumn census 20232022 (end-year 20222021 to 20232022 data)	LocalLA authority average for institution type
Large programmes	20212020 to 20222021 youngYoung people’sPeople’s matched admin dataset (YPMAD)	20212020 to 20222021 YPMAD	No impact
Industry placements/Condition of funding	R14 20222021 to 20232022	Autumn census 20232022 (end-year 20222021 to 20232022 data)	No impact
Advanced maths premium	20232022 to 20242023 R04 data with a reference date of 1 November 20232022	Autumn2022 census 2023 (2023 to 2024 data)	If institution is open in 2023 todata 2024,returned then ILR/census as appropriate. If not open in 2023the to 2024, then no impact
Core maths premium	2023 to 2024 R04 data with a reference date of 1 November 2023	Autumn census2022 2023 (2023 to 2024 data)census	If institution is open in 20232022 to 2024,2023, then ILR/census as appropriate. If not open in 20232022 to 2024,2023, then no impact

Resources

• 16

  ESFA toenquiries 19contact fundingform allocationsfor supportingall documentsenquiries for 2023the toEducation 2024

• Documentand exchangeSkills support
Funding Agency