The ESFA carries out annual reviews of all school and college 16-19 study programmes to identify benchmark data and outlier or ‘non-standard’ institutions. This allows you to assess yourself against the
patterns to ensure that your study programmes are in line with
study programme guidance. The most recent analysis is of the 16-19 study programmes delivery for the 2017 to 2018 academic year.
The four main areas where schools and colleges tend to be non-conforming are as follow:
- Core aim (for the vast majority of students it will be either “one or more substantial academic, applied or technical qualifications which prepare the student for further education or employment”)
- Employment, enrichment and pastoral (EEP) hours
- Work experience (the guidance also includes a helpful work experience factsheet)
- Maths and English condition of funding
It is always advisable to spend some time refreshing knowledge in these areas to avoid financial penalties.