Guidance

Advice: funding rules for 16 to 19 provision

Guidance on 16 to 19 education and skills funding rules for the current and previous funding years.

From:
Department for Education and Education and Skills Funding Agency
Published
10 March 2014
Last updated
30 April 2025 鈥� See all updates

Applies to England

Documents

Advice: funding rules for 16 to 19 provision 2025 to 2026

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Advice: funding regulations for post-16 provision 2024 to 2025

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MS PowerPoint Presentation, 1.18 MB

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Advice: funding regulations for post-16 provision 2023 to 2024

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Details

The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) closed on 31 March 2025. All activity has moved to the Department for Education (DfE). You should continue to follow this guidance.

Advice: funding rules for 16 to 19 provision 2025 to 2026聽

These rules and guidance cover the period 1 August 2025 to 31 July 2026 for all types of institutions (except for academies whose funded year is 1 September 2025 to 31 August) and is our current advice for the funding year.聽

We have made the following additions and updates to this guidance:聽

  • the guidance title has changed from 鈥渇unding regulations鈥� to 鈥渇unding rules鈥� to clarify its purpose and align with other DfE funding guidance and rules.聽 institutions should continue using this document as they always have- its purpose and application remain unchanged

  • paragraph 56 includes additional detail on enrolling Year 11 students on to a study programme who completed their studies in the summer

  • paragraph 99 advises institutions on actions to take if 聽planned activity for a student becomes unavailable

  • section 7 reflects the latest maths and English condition of funding guidance for the 2025 to 2026 academic year

Updates to this page

Published 10 March 2014
Last updated 30 April 2025 show all updates

  1. We have added the funding rules for 16 to 19 provision 2025 to 2026 guidance.

  2. We have updated the funding regulations for 2024 to 2025 and added the changes to the what's new section. Section 6: subcontracting now includes all our subcontracting advice for schools and academies. Our advice on terms that must be included in contracts for subcontracting is set out in paragraphs 203 to 205 for schools and academies.

  3. We have added the guidance document Advice: funding regulations for post-16 provision 2024 to 2025.

  4. We have added Advice: funding regulations for post-16 provision 2023 to 2024. We have made the following additions and updates to this guidance: Student eligibility 鈥� confirmation that those coming to UK as foreign tourists are ineligible for 16 to 19 funding T Levels and Traineeships 鈥� see Section 7 for confirmation that the Condition of funding requirements now also apply to students undertaking T Levels 鈥� from 1 August 2023, we will no longer fund a standalone national traineeships programme. Traineeship provision will be integrated into 16 to 19 study programme and adult education provision from 1 August 2023. The last start date for traineeships under the current programme is 31 July 2023. Traineeships started on or before this date will continue to be funded as set out in this guidance.

  5. We have updated the Advice: funding regulations for post-16 provision 2022 to 2023 guidance document.

  6. We have published a powerpoint to support the ESFA funding guidance for young people 2021 to 2023.

  7. The Student eligibility and funding advice for 2021 to 2023 presentation is now live.

  8. Added funding regulations for post-16 provision 2022 to 2023, removed November 2020 advice that may apply to either funding year.

  9. We have updated the following advice in respect of recording and evidencing the delivery of non-qualification hours (excludes students flagged as either High needs and/or Education Health Care (EHC) plan) in paragraphs 107 and 124. The advice in Annex B includes a new table B2. We have made a minor clarification to advice in Annex C Question and Answer 15, to make clearer that students must not be funded or any planned hours recorded for any overlap periods between study programmes, and apprenticeships funding at the same (or financially related) funded institutions or their subcontractors.

  10. We have updated student eligibility advice for EU and EEA students, updated our advice on repeat year funding and included advice on our specific subcontracting restrictions for 16 to 19 delivery.

  11. We have published the funding regulations advice for post 16 provision for 2021 to 2022.

  12. We have updated the Funding regulations for post-16 provision 2020 to 2021 to include advice on coronavirus (COVID-19) and impact on 'Planned hours for 2020 to 2021'

  13. We have updated the Funding regulations for post-16 provision for 2020 to 2021 to include provision for the high value courses for 18 and 19 year olds one year offer

  14. We have updated the PowerPoint presentations for the funding regulations for post-16 provision 2019 to 2020. These now include allowances for the impacts of coronavirus (COVID-19) including the use of electronic registration systems and alternative evidence to wet signatures already published in the funding regulations document

  15. We have published the Funding regulations for 2020 to 2021 and updated the regulations for 2019 to 2020 to account for the use of electronic recruitment and delivery systems during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic

  16. We have updated the funding regulations for 2019 to 2020 to clarify advice to institutions

  17. We have uploaded a presentation that summarises student eligibility rules for 2019 to 2020

  18. We have uploaded the funding regulations for post 16 provision guidance document for 2019 to 2020 and removed older years' guidance

  19. To help explain our guidance we have added a powerpoint presentation about post-16 funding regulations for 2018 to 2019.

  20. Student eligibility guidance presentation for 2018 to 2019 has been added.

  21. the 16 to 19 funding regulations guidance for 2018 to 2019 has been added

  22. Funding regulations and funding advice presentation for 2017 to 2018 has been added.

  23. Added a presentation to support the student eligibility elements of the funding guidance for young people

  24. Advice: funding regulations for post-16 provision 2017 to 2018 has been added

  25. Minor update to 16 to 19 funding guidance to reflect the recently published sub-contracting guidance.

  26. Funding guidance for young people 2016 to 2017 has been added.

  27. Added 15 16 guidance

  28. 2014 to 2015 version added to page

  29. First published.

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