The Skills Funding Agency has today published the funding guidance, rates and formula for 2016/17 across 10 individual documents (see below).

It explained that the plans for skills devolution and reform of apprenticeships had provided an opportunity “to review and rationalise our current funding approach and the way we present the funding rules”.

“This year we have produced a suite of funding rules documents that can be accessed by providers and stakeholders in a number of ways,” it added.

The statement added that the SFA had “streamlined” the funding rules and removed duplication, by publishing “a document that sets out the rules that must be followed for all SFA providers”.

It has also published separate funding rules for the new Adult Education Budget (AEB), apprenticeships and adult learner loans to ensure easy reference for providers.

In addition to this, a document that sets out funding rules common to “all apprenticeships, regardless of whether providers are delivering frameworks or standards”, has been unveiled.

It said: “As the AEB is a new budget with rules designed to provide greater local flexibility for providers to respond to local needs, in advance of formal devolution of skills funding starting from 2018… we have published a supporting document: Adult Education Budget — Changing Context and Arrangements for 2016 to 2017.”

The SFA said that there were “no significant changes to the funding calculation in the funding year 2016 to 2017; the only change is how we set the rates for qualifications”.

“If we funded the qualification in 2015 to 2016 we will maintain that rate,” it added.

“Otherwise, we will set the rate based on regulated guided learning hours. We are no longer setting rates based upon the credit value of the qualification. For other learning activity not involving a qualification, the rate will be based on the planned hours of the learning.”

All colleges and other training providers were also invited to review the rules and share feedback with then SFA.

The SFA will host an online forum from Monday (February 1) to Friday, (February 12).

  1. Apprenticeship standards funding rules 2016 to 2017
  2. Apprenticeships common funding rules 2016 to 2017
  3. Combined Framework Rules
  4. Combined Standards Rules
  5. SFA common funding rules 2016 to 2017 FINAL
  6. Summary of Changes 
  7. Adult Education Budget changing context and arrangements for arrangements for 2016 to 2017
  8. Adult education budget funding rules 2016 to 2017
  9. Advanced Learner Loans funding rules 2016 to 2017
  10. Apprenticeship Framework Funding Rules 2016 to 2017
  11. Zipped file with all 10 documents

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Register here for a free Lsect webinar about the 16/17 guidance with Nick Linford, author of the Complete Guide to Apprenticeship Funding.

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2 Comments

  1. It was only a matter of time after the scrapping of QCF that funding would be pegged to GLH. But it does leave us with 3 ways things fit into the matrix. one determined by history and credit value, one by GLH band & new qual funding decided by…? A fraction more complexity for curriculum planners.

    The pendulum is firmly swinging away from awarding bodies though, especially with greater flexibility of community learning being brought in AEB.

  2. See the new SFA ‘Common funding rules’.

    One small example of the effect of SFA shrinking…. Para A105 concerning learner eligibility for funding. It now has a very few conditions then refers to 2 other documents when those conditions are not met.

    So, a task that would have taken 1 or 2 SFA staff to include in the SFA funding rules now requires someone at every provider to do this task. Instant massive duplication of effort.
    Bravo.