Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund Grant Determination 2024 to 2025
Published 15 April 2024
Applies to England
Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund Grant Determination (2024-25): No 31/7244
The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Local Government (“the Minister”), in exercise of the powers conferred by section 31 of the Local Government Act 2003, makes the following determination:
Citation
1. This determination may be cited as the Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund Grant Determination (2024-25): No 31/7244 .
Purpose of the grant
2. The purpose of the grant is to provide support to local authorities in England towards expenditure lawfully incurred or to be incurred by them. It is intended to enable local authorities to maintain any improvements made in 2023 to 2024, with the expectation they will seek further improvements to adult social care from 2024 to 25, in particular to increase adult social care capacity through reducing adult social care waiting times, increasing fee rates, and increasing workforce capacity and retention.
Determination
3. The Minister determines as the authorities to which grant is to be paid and the amount of grant to be paid, the authorities and amounts which are set out in Annex A.
4. The grant will be paid in monthly instalments.
Grant conditions
5. Pursuant to section 31(4) of the Local Government Act 2003, the Minister determines that the grant will be paid subject to the conditions specified in Annex B.
Treasury consent
6. Before making this determination in relation to local authorities in England, the Minister obtained the consent of the Treasury.
Signed by authority of the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Local Government.
Angelica Larkin, Deputy Director
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
April 2024
Annex A: Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund allocations to local authorities 2024-25
Local Authority | Adult Social Care Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund total allocations to local authorities 2024 to 25 | Of which, allocation from the £162 million continued Fair Cost of Care element | Of which, allocation from the remaining £888 million element |
---|---|---|---|
Barking and Dagenham | £3,994,643 | £616,316 | £3,378,327 |
Barnet | £6,332,764 | £977,055 | £5,355,709 |
Barnsley | £5,418,004 | £835,921 | £4,582,083 |
Bath and North East Somerset | £3,192,668 | £492,583 | £2,700,085 |
Bedford | £2,716,053 | £419,048 | £2,297,005 |
Bexley | £4,061,639 | £626,653 | £3,434,986 |
Birmingham | £24,501,292 | £3,780,199 | £20,721,093 |
Blackburn with Darwen | £3,344,322 | £515,981 | £2,828,341 |
Blackpool | £3,953,620 | £609,987 | £3,343,633 |
Bolton | £6,081,698 | £938,319 | £5,143,379 |
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | £7,655,786 | £1,181,178 | £6,474,608 |
Bracknell Forest | £1,583,032 | £244,239 | £1,338,793 |
Bradford | £10,050,291 | £1,550,616 | £8,499,675 |
Brent | £5,875,786 | £906,550 | £4,969,236 |
Brighton and Hove | £5,375,388 | £829,346 | £4,546,042 |
Bristol | £8,874,101 | £1,369,147 | £7,504,954 |
Bromley | £5,208,242 | £803,557 | £4,404,684 |
Buckinghamshire Council | £7,312,018 | £1,128,140 | £6,183,878 |
Bury | £3,573,110 | £551,280 | £3,021,830 |
Calderdale | £4,027,699 | £621,416 | £3,406,282 |
Cambridgeshire | £10,167,747 | £1,568,738 | £8,599,009 |
Camden | £5,625,209 | £867,889 | £4,757,320 |
Central Bedfordshire | £3,788,628 | £584,531 | £3,204,097 |
Cheshire East | £6,346,539 | £979,180 | £5,367,359 |
Cheshire West and Chester | £6,419,083 | £990,373 | £5,428,710 |
City of London | £213,459 | £32,934 | £180,525 |
Cornwall | £12,221,055 | £1,885,534 | £10,335,521 |
Coventry | £6,785,896 | £1,046,967 | £5,738,929 |
Croydon | £6,130,859 | £945,904 | £5,184,955 |
Cumberland | £6,078,276 | £1,034,121 | £5,044,155 |
Darlington | £2,192,627 | £338,291 | £1,854,336 |
Derby | £5,024,989 | £775,284 | £4,249,705 |
Derbyshire | £15,869,463 | £2,448,432 | £13,421,032 |
Devon | £15,642,954 | £2,413,484 | £13,229,470 |
Doncaster | £6,605,724 | £1,019,169 | £5,586,555 |
Dorset Council | £7,467,053 | £1,152,060 | £6,314,993 |
Dudley | £6,832,090 | £1,054,094 | £5,777,996 |
Durham | £12,347,893 | £1,905,104 | £10,442,790 |
Ealing | £6,201,862 | £956,859 | £5,245,003 |
East Riding of Yorkshire | £6,326,111 | £976,029 | £5,350,083 |
East Sussex | £11,312,222 | £1,745,314 | £9,566,908 |
Enfield | £5,681,530 | £876,579 | £4,804,951 |
Essex | £25,897,787 | £3,995,659 | £21,902,128 |
Gateshead | £4,958,120 | £764,967 | £4,193,153 |
Gloucestershire | £11,068,681 | £1,707,739 | £9,360,942 |
Greenwich | £5,819,960 | £897,937 | £4,922,024 |
Hackney | £6,146,889 | £948,377 | £5,198,511 |
Halton | £2,796,203 | £431,414 | £2,364,789 |
Hammersmith and Fulham | £4,017,917 | £619,907 | £3,398,010 |
Hampshire | £20,800,924 | £3,209,285 | £17,591,638 |
Haringey | £5,023,385 | £775,037 | £4,248,348 |
Harrow | £4,242,999 | £654,634 | £3,588,365 |
Hartlepool | £2,192,415 | £338,258 | £1,854,157 |
Havering | £4,399,863 | £678,836 | £3,721,027 |
Herefordshire | £3,852,684 | £594,414 | £3,258,270 |
Hertfordshire | £18,088,066 | £2,790,730 | £15,297,336 |
Hillingdon | £4,554,845 | £702,748 | £3,852,098 |
Hounslow | £4,372,120 | £674,556 | £3,697,565 |
Isle of Wight | £3,353,067 | £517,330 | £2,835,736 |
Isles of Scilly | £55,392 | £8,546 | £46,845 |
Islington | £5,625,764 | £867,975 | £4,757,789 |
Kensington and Chelsea | £3,792,275 | £585,094 | £3,207,181 |
Kent | £26,969,400 | £4,160,993 | £22,808,406 |
Kingston upon Hull | £6,356,626 | £980,737 | £5,375,889 |
Kingston upon Thames | £2,507,658 | £386,896 | £2,120,762 |
Kirklees | £8,136,981 | £1,255,420 | £6,881,561 |
Knowsley | £4,274,619 | £659,513 | £3,615,106 |
Lambeth | £6,601,509 | £1,018,518 | £5,582,990 |
Lancashire | £24,141,914 | £3,724,752 | £20,417,162 |
Leeds | £14,484,441 | £2,234,742 | £12,249,699 |
Leicester | £6,885,105 | £1,062,273 | £5,822,832 |
Leicestershire | £10,562,332 | £1,629,617 | £8,932,715 |
Lewisham | £5,984,484 | £923,320 | £5,061,163 |
Lincolnshire | £14,734,780 | £2,273,366 | £12,461,414 |
Liverpool | £12,937,346 | £1,996,048 | £10,941,298 |
Luton | £3,448,046 | £531,984 | £2,916,061 |
Manchester | £11,663,968 | £1,799,584 | £9,864,384 |
Medway | £4,365,687 | £673,563 | £3,692,124 |
Merton | £3,272,106 | £504,839 | £2,767,266 |
Middlesbrough | £3,315,976 | £511,608 | £2,804,368 |
Milton Keynes | £3,972,841 | £612,953 | £3,359,889 |
Newcastle upon Tyne | £6,566,135 | £1,013,061 | £5,553,074 |
Newham | £6,424,307 | £991,179 | £5,433,128 |
Norfolk | £18,281,716 | £2,820,608 | £15,461,109 |
North East Lincolnshire | £3,411,231 | £526,304 | £2,884,927 |
North Lincolnshire | £3,329,021 | £513,620 | £2,815,401 |
North Northamptonshire | £5,521,656 | £851,913 | £4,669,743 |
North Somerset | £4,042,261 | £623,663 | £3,418,598 |
North Tyneside | £4,510,961 | £695,977 | £3,814,984 |
North Yorkshire | £10,603,254 | £1,635,931 | £8,967,323 |
Northumberland | £6,656,353 | £1,026,980 | £5,629,373 |
Nottingham | £6,781,371 | £1,046,269 | £5,735,103 |
Nottinghamshire | £15,430,932 | £2,380,772 | £13,050,160 |
Oldham | £4,910,300 | £757,589 | £4,152,711 |
Oxfordshire | £10,025,551 | £1,546,799 | £8,478,752 |
Peterborough | £3,472,268 | £535,721 | £2,936,546 |
Plymouth | £5,617,957 | £866,771 | £4,751,187 |
Portsmouth | £3,895,575 | £601,032 | £3,294,544 |
Reading | £2,491,572 | £384,414 | £2,107,158 |
Redbridge | £4,882,396 | £753,284 | £4,129,112 |
Redcar and Cleveland | £3,150,984 | £486,152 | £2,664,833 |
Richmond upon Thames | £2,891,184 | £446,068 | £2,445,115 |
Rochdale | £4,849,068 | £748,142 | £4,100,926 |
Rotherham | £5,885,631 | £908,069 | £4,977,562 |
Rutland | £593,776 | £91,611 | £502,165 |
Salford | £5,764,798 | £889,426 | £4,875,372 |
Sandwell | £8,084,685 | £1,247,351 | £6,837,333 |
Sefton | £6,671,373 | £1,029,298 | £5,642,075 |
Sheffield | £11,835,528 | £1,826,053 | £10,009,475 |
Shropshire | £6,097,977 | £940,831 | £5,157,147 |
Slough | £2,255,107 | £347,931 | £1,907,176 |
Solihull | £3,807,808 | £587,490 | £3,220,318 |
Somerset | £10,926,856 | £1,685,858 | £9,240,998 |
South Gloucestershire | £4,090,824 | £631,156 | £3,459,669 |
South Tyneside | £4,004,265 | £617,801 | £3,386,464 |
Southampton | £4,853,564 | £748,836 | £4,104,728 |
Southend-on-Sea | £3,605,002 | £556,200 | £3,048,801 |
Southwark | £6,871,583 | £1,060,187 | £5,811,396 |
St. Helens | £4,212,493 | £649,928 | £3,562,566 |
Staffordshire | £15,496,094 | £2,390,826 | £13,105,268 |
Stockport | £5,614,067 | £866,170 | £4,747,897 |
Stockton-on-Tees | £3,697,919 | £570,536 | £3,127,383 |
Stoke-on-Trent | £5,827,044 | £899,030 | £4,928,014 |
Suffolk | £14,268,622 | £2,201,444 | £12,067,177 |
Sunderland | £6,859,027 | £1,058,250 | £5,800,777 |
Surrey | £17,476,538 | £2,696,380 | £14,780,158 |
Sutton | £3,225,610 | £497,666 | £2,727,945 |
Swindon | £3,365,493 | £519,247 | £2,846,245 |
Tameside | £5,048,908 | £778,974 | £4,269,934 |
Telford and Wrekin | £3,387,521 | £522,646 | £2,864,875 |
Thurrock | £2,862,144 | £441,588 | £2,420,556 |
Torbay | £3,625,036 | £559,291 | £3,065,745 |
Tower Hamlets | £6,409,220 | £988,851 | £5,420,369 |
Trafford | £4,137,458 | £638,351 | £3,499,107 |
Wakefield | £7,213,830 | £1,112,991 | £6,100,839 |
Walsall | £6,264,233 | £966,482 | £5,297,752 |
Waltham Forest | £4,763,028 | £734,867 | £4,028,160 |
Wandsworth | £5,676,370 | £875,783 | £4,800,587 |
Warrington | £3,603,851 | £556,023 | £3,047,828 |
Warwickshire | £9,776,305 | £1,508,344 | £8,267,961 |
West Berkshire | £2,191,427 | £338,106 | £1,853,321 |
Westmorland and Furness | £4,890,820 | £658,253 | £4,232,567 |
West Northamptonshire | £6,365,690 | £982,135 | £5,383,555 |
West Sussex | £14,452,602 | £2,229,830 | £12,222,772 |
Westminster | £5,788,821 | £893,132 | £4,895,689 |
Wigan | £6,965,975 | £1,074,750 | £5,891,224 |
Wiltshire | £7,975,904 | £1,230,568 | £6,745,336 |
Windsor and Maidenhead | £2,084,500 | £321,609 | £1,762,891 |
Wirral | £7,876,618 | £1,215,250 | £6,661,369 |
Wokingham | £1,756,952 | £271,073 | £1,485,880 |
Wolverhampton | £6,022,088 | £929,122 | £5,092,966 |
Worcestershire | £10,432,735 | £1,609,622 | £8,823,113 |
York | £3,201,628 | £493,965 | £2,707,662 |
Total | £1,050,000,000 |
*Funding paid to local authorities with responsibility for adult social care only
Allocations may not sum to exact totals due to rounding.
Annex B: Grant conditions
In this annex:
- “the Department” means the Department of Health and Social Care;
- “fee rate” means the rate determined and paid by a local authority to providers for care and support services;
- “grant” means the amounts set out in Annex A for each recipient authority;
- “recipient authority” means the relevant local authority as listed on Annex A to this determination;
- “Minister” means the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Local Government.
This grant determination is supported by the Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund 2024 to 2025 guidance that sets out further detail on the grant and recipient authorities’ responsibilities in administering it.
Use of the grant
1. The first condition is that the recipient authority must allocate its full grant allocation to adult social care, as part of a substantial increase in planned adult social care spending.
a. Local authorities must spend their allocation of the £162 million element of the fund, continued from the previous 2022 to 2023 Market Sustainability and Fair Cost of Care Fund, on maintaining these previously increased fee rates paid to adult social care providers. This should be achieved through sustained fee rate increases as opposed to non-recurrent fee uplifts.
b. The additional £888 million element of the grant must be used on adult social care, in accordance with condition 2 below.
2. The second condition is that the £888 million element of the fund must be used to maintain improvements made from 2023-24. In addition to this condition, the government’s expectation is that local authorities should use this funding to seek further improvements in at least one of the target areas in 2024-25.
3. The target areas are the priority areas, as specified by the Department, to improve through use of the grant. The Department will monitor these areas through specified performance metrics in order to assess the maintenance of improvements made in 2023-24, and to assess whether further improvements have been made. The target areas are:
- Increasing fee rates paid to adult social care providers in local areas;
- Increasing adult social care workforce capacity and retention;
- Reducing adult social care waiting times.
a. Further information on each of the target areas is provided in the supporting Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund 2024-25 guidance.
b. The target areas chosen by the recipient authority should support the most pressing needs in their local area. The recipient authority must confirm in their initial report which of the target areas it will be seeking further improvements in, alongside planned spend on each.
c. Recipient authorities should provide assurance that other target areas not selected in either of the two years of the fund have not worsened and as such, recipient authorities must report on all the performance metrics as set out in the Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund guidance provided by the Department.
d. The Department will provide guidance, templates, and ongoing support to help authorities meet the grant conditions and achieve the purpose of the funding as set out in paragraph 2 of the grant determination.
4. The third condition is that recipient authorities must provide:
a. An initial report by 23:59 on 22 May 2024 which must include:
i. Confirmation that the recipient authority’s share of the grant has been allocated in full to adult social care;
ii. Confirmation that the recipient authority has used its share of the £162 million element of the fund to maintain fee uplifts originally made as part of the 2022-23 Market Sustainability and Fair Cost of Care Fund;
iii. Confirmation of which of the 3 target areas the authority will seek further improvements on, alongside planned spend on each;
iv. Reporting of all the required performance metrics specified in the guidance.
b. A final report by 23:59 on 21 May 2025 which must include:
i. Confirmation that the grant has been spent in full on adult social care;
ii. Confirmation that the recipient authority’s share of the continued £162 million component of the fund has been used to maintain fee uplifts;
iii. A completed ‘spend return’ section of the final report template;
iv. A record of all the performance metrics specified in the guidance.
c. Recipient authorities should make use of any templates provided by the Department.
5. The fourth condition is that recipient authorities must provide an MSIF Capacity Plan by 23:59 on 10 June 2024, which involves providing data and intelligence about local capacity in long-term services. The exact data that the authority must input into the plan is set out in the supporting guidance.
6. Final templates for the initial report, final report and MSIF Capacity Plan will be provided by the Department in due course. Final reports must be approved by the recipient authority’s chief executive or s151 officer. To assist the recipient authority with the additional cost of completing the returns, it may use up to £5,000 of their overall grant allocation, which cannot be exceeded.
7. The contact details for submitting the returns at conditions 3 and 4 are: MSIFCorrespondence@dhsc.gov.uk. The Department reserves the right to provide for a later date for submission, update the means by which returns are submitted, and may provide alternative methods for submission in future.
8. Where a recipient authority fails to evidence that improvements have been maintained from 2023-24, or that further improvements have not been targeted, Officials from the Department may engage with the recipient authority to gain further information and understanding, and what additional support may be required to meet the grant conditions. This may include asking the recipient authority to provide more performance data or repeat exercises.
9. The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care may at any time require a further external validation to be carried out by an appropriately qualified independent accountant or auditor, on the use of the grant.
Payment arrangements
10. The grant funding set out in Annex A will be paid in monthly instalments. The Minister reserves the right to alter the timing or amount of grants payments.
11. Funding from the grant must be spent within the designated financial year. If any funding from the grant is not spent within the designated financial year, the Minister may require repayment of the grant monies paid, as may be determined by the Minister and notified in writing to the recipient authority.
Financial management
12. A recipient authority must maintain a sound system of internal financial controls.
13. If a recipient authority has any grounds for suspecting financial irregularity in the use of any grant paid under this funding agreement, it must notify the Department immediately, explain what steps are being taken to investigate the suspicion and keep the Department informed about the progress of the investigation. For these purposes “financial irregularity” includes fraud or other impropriety, mismanagement, and the use of grant for purposes other than those for which it was provided.
Breach of conditions and withholding future funding
14. If the recipient authority fails to comply with any of these conditions, or if any overpayment is made under this grant, or any amount is paid in error, or any unspent funding is not returned, the Secretary of State may reduce, suspend or withhold grant payments or require the repayment of the whole or any part of the grant monies paid, as may be determined by the Secretary of State and notified in writing to the recipient authority. Such sum as has been notified will immediately become repayable to the Secretary of State who may offset the sum against any future amount due to the recipient authority from central government.
15. The list below contains examples of a breach of the grant conditions:
a) Inappropriate use of funding, or no evidence of funding having been spent on the specified purpose.
b) Failure to submit one or more of the documents as specified in paragraphs 3-4, and/or submission of incomplete documents, and/or documents that are not submitted by the deadline.
c) No maintenance of any improvements from 2023-24. In this case, as set out in Condition 2 above, the Department will take steps to provide authorities with the opportunity to explain how they have used the funding and any additional context before considering further measures.