Glossary
Change control
The discipline of controlling, recording and authorising changes to reported data.
In full
Change control means changes to data that has already been reported are made deliberately, by people authorised to make them, with the reason recorded.
Without it, a return can change between periods with nobody able to say why, which is both an audit problem and an operational one.
The rules behind this
When learner data is changed after it has been reported, the reason for the change and the authority for it should be recorded. An unexplained change between returns is a common audit query.
Where this comes up
scenario
An apprentice changes employer mid-programme
An apprentice moves to a new employer and wants to continue the same apprenticeship. Several records have to change together.
diagnostic
Funding dropped this month and nobody can explain why
The funding report for this period shows less than expected, or less than last period. Because every return restates the whole year, a change made this month can move earnings reported in earlier months, so the drop may have nothing to do with this month's delivery.
module
16 to 19 funding: how the formula actually works
Student numbers, band, national rate, retention, programme cost weighting and uplifts. Where each element comes from, and which of them your own data controls.
scenario
An adult learner moves house mid-programme
A learner moves from a devolved area to a non-devolved one halfway through their aim. Which authority's rules apply, and does anything change?
scenario
A flagged record turns out to be entirely correct
A learner appears on a monitoring report every period. Each time, investigation shows the record is correct.
scenario
A high needs student starts before the top-up is agreed
A student with significant needs starts in September. The local authority top-up has not been agreed by December.
Sources
These are the official documents this page rests on. Where a figure, a deadline or an exact rule matters, the document is the authority and this page is the explanation.
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