Glossary
In learning
A learner recorded as currently studying an aim that has not ended.
In full
A learner is in learning while their aim is open: it has started, has no actual end date, and carries a continuing completion status.
A learner who has actually stopped attending but is still recorded as in learning continues to generate funding, which is the single most common source of clawback.
Where this comes up
diagnostic
Should this be a break in learning or a withdrawal?
The learner has stopped, and the question is whether to record a break in learning, which pauses the programme on the basis that they will return, or a withdrawal, which ends it. The two have different funding and achievement consequences, so the choice is not administrative.
diagnostic
A learner left weeks ago but is still showing as continuing
The learner has stopped attending, but the ILR still shows their aim as open with no actual end date, so the system believes they are still in learning and keeps generating funding for them.
scenario
An apprentice goes on long-term sick leave
An apprentice is signed off work indefinitely. Deciding between a break in learning and a withdrawal is a funding, performance and evidence decision all at once.
module
Withdrawals, breaks and restarts
How leaving is recorded, why the date matters as much as the fact, and where the line falls between a break in learning and a withdrawal.
scenario
A governor asks what the funding risk actually is
At a board meeting, a governor asks what would have to go wrong for the funding position to be materially misstated. What is a good answer?
scenario
Adult delivery is running above the allocation
By May, adult skills earnings are tracking above the allocation. What can be done, and what evidence is needed?