Correspondence

ESFA Update local authorities: 10 May 2023

Published 10 May 2023

Applies to England

© Crown copyright 2023

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/esfa-update-10-may-2023/esfa-update-local-authorities-10-may-2023

1. Reminder: local authority section 151 (S151) officer return certificate for the financial year 2022 to 2023

A reminder that the return for the financial year 2022 to 2023 is in an online format and is available to complete for pre-16 and post-16 funding.

You may also know this as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) return.

The digital form can be accessed by multiple colleagues at the same time at the local authority. We encourage you to share this link with your colleagues so that the grant funding lines can be completed directly, to avoid the need to collate the information centrally. Your S151 officer will have the opportunity to review all of the data before the final declaration and submission.

Please note there will be no manual version emailed out to local authorities.

For more information and instructions on completing your return, read the guidance on GOV.UK.

The deadline for submitting all funding forms and your S151/CFO certificate for the financial year 2022 to 2023 is 5pm on 19 May 2023.

2. Information: clarifying your remittance advice for schools supplementary grant and maintained schools additional grant

Remittance advice that we issued to local authorities in the week commencing 24 April 2023 contained incorrect details.

The remittance advice should have stated that one of the grants to be paid on 28 April 2023 is the mainstream schools additional grant (MSAG). This is the first payment for the 2023 to 2024 financial year, covering the April to August 2023 period. It has been coded incorrectly as schools supplementary grant (SSG).

We are sorry for any confusion that this may have caused.

School-level allocations of the MSAG for the full 2023 to 2024 financial year were recently published on GOV.UK.

Allocations and guidance relating to the SSG can also be found on GOV.UK.

3. Information: 16 to 19 tuition fund 2023 to 2024 claim form

The 16 to 19 tuition fund 2023 to 2024 opt in/out digital form is now live.

The deadline for your submission is 11:59pm on 26 May 2023.

We’ve published guidance to access and help you complete the form.

4. Information: do the fire doors in your school meet the required safety standards?

Julie Noble and Joanne Rafferty conduct on-site fire risk assessments every day in schools as part of the RPA resilience measures. In our latest Buying for Schools blog post, they will guide you through how to check and make sure your fire doors are up to the required safety standards.

5. Information: it’s not too late, have you got your ticket for the Schools and Academies Show on 17 May?

It’s not too late to register and join the DfE Schools Commercial Team at the Schools and Academies Show, London Excel on Wednesday 17 May.

The team will be hosting a session at the show:

  • 10 – 10:30: How Get help buying for schools can help your school (Business and Finance theatre)

You can also speak directly to the team and join our mini sessions at the Government Education Village:

  • 13:50 – 14:10: Energy and your school
  • 14:20 – 14:40: Is your school cyber secure?

Registration is free for schools, multi-academy trusts and the wider public sector.

6. Information: Buying for Schools webinars – book your place now

Are you a school business professional who buys goods and services for your school?

We host regular webinars on how using our approved frameworks could help your school get value for money. Click on the links to find out more and book your place:

You can find the full programme of webinars for the summer term on the Summer 2023 webinar page. Visit the page to find out more and book your place.

7. Information: book a 1:1 chat to discuss your school’s buying needs – spaces available on 23 May

Schools Commercial Team are offering the opportunity for a free, virtual 1:1 conversation with a member of the team, to see how we can support you.

You can speak to us about anything you like to help you make informed buying choices for your school.

There is no pressure or obligation to take any of our recommendations forward following the conversation. Book your 1:1 conversation now.

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