Glossary
Funding rules
The official document setting out what may be funded, for whom, on what conditions and with what evidence, for one stream and funding year.
In full
The funding rules are the contractual basis on which funding is provided. They define eligibility, what can be claimed, the evidence required and the performance management arrangements.
They are published per stream and per funding year, and are reissued during a year from time to time. Which version applies depends on the stream: apprenticeships follow the rules for the apprentice's start date; the Adult Skills Fund and 16 to 19 funding follow the rules for the funding year of delivery.
The rules behind this
A funding rule is only ever true for a stated funding year. Carrying an answer from one year into another, without checking, is one of the most common causes of an incorrect claim.
Where this comes up
module
Devolved adult funding: whose rules apply
The learner's home postcode decides which authority funds their adult skills learning, and therefore which rules, rates and reporting apply.
module
How further education funding actually works
Colleges are not paid a block grant for teaching. They are funded through several separate streams, each with its own rules, and each earned by recording delivery in the ILR.
diagnostic
Learners undertaking English or maths within an apprenticeship when they have already achieved level 1 or above
We will fund an apprentice up to level 2 in English or maths or both subjects where they do not already hold a suitable equivalent qualification. For 19+ apprentices, English and maths are an optional part of the programme. Where the apprentice already holds approved level 1 qualifications, they must start, continue to study, and take the assessments for a level 2 English or maths. The latest funding rules confirm that apprentices with GCSE grades D to G or grades 3 to 1 have already met the level 1 requirement. They are not eligible for further funding at entry level or level 1.
module
Building a funding map for your college
A funding map sets out every stream a college receives, how each is earned, when it reconciles and what data drives it. It is the fastest way for a finance or leadership newcomer to become useful.
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.
module
Apprenticeship funding: price, band, service and evidence
A price negotiated with each employer, capped by the band maximum, paid monthly with a completion element, and dependent on the ILR and the apprenticeship service agreeing.
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.
Content reused from GOV.UK is Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence. FEFunding is not endorsed by the Department for Education.