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Guidance

Pre-16 schools funding: local authority guidance for 2024 to 2025

Local authority guidance for implementing the funding system for the 2024 to 2025 financial year

Updates to this page

From:
Education and Skills Funding Agency and Department for Education
Published:
17 July 2023
Last updated:
21 October 2025
Show all updates

  1. We have made minor updates to the 'Guidance for completing the disapplications form' in section 3 'Accessing the form' for completing a disapplication submission.

  2. We have updated the 'Guidance for completing the disapplications form' in section 3 'Accessing the form' with additional instructions for completing a disapplication submission.

  3. We have updated 'Guidance for completing the disapplication form' in line with releasing an improved version of the digital disapplication request form for submissions. Local authorities will now be able to submit up to 5 documents of supporting information as part of their disapplication request.

  4. We have updated the 'Schools operational guide: 2024 to 2025' in section 29: Falling rolls fund, to make it clearer for local authorities and schools using growth and falling rolls funding for repurposing and removing surplus places. We have updated the 'Growth and falling rolls fund guidance: 2024 to 2025' in section 3.2: Setting falling rolls funding criteria, to make it clearer for local authorities and schools using growth and falling rolls funding for repurposing and removing surplus places.

  5. We have updated the link in section 1. Introduction of the 'Schools operational guide: 2024 to 2025' to direct users to the newly published 'School and Early Years Finance and Childcare (Provision of Information About Young Children)(Amendment)(England) Regulations 2024 ' which came into force 13 February 2024.

  6. We have undertaken a December 2023 update to the schools operational guide: 2024 to 2025 to reflect current policy and to finalise funding arrangements in 2024 to 2025. We have updated the growth and falling rolls fund guidance 2024 to 2025 in sections 2.2, 2.4 and 3.2 to reflect current policy updates. We have updated section 4.2: types of requests in the 'guidance for completing the disapplications form' to advise users of the process, if they wish to make an early years disapplication request.

  7. We have published 'Guidance for completing the disapplications form' which provides instructions and advice to local authorities using the new digital disapplication proforma tool for submitting a disapplication request. We have also updated the 'Schools operational guide: 2024 to 2025' to include links to the new digital disapplication request form and the accompanying guidance.

  8. In line with the republication of the 2024 to 2025 NFF policy document and technical notes by DfE, we have updated the following pre-16 schools funding 2024 to 2025 documents: Schools operational guide: 2024 to 2025 – we have updated sections 2, 4, 7.7, 11.1, 14, 24, 25 and 47. The notional SEN budget for mainstream schools: operational guide 2024 to 2025 – we have updated section 5: Illustrative examples, including figures 1 and 2. We have also republished the allowable factor value ranges: 2024 to 2025 spreadsheet. We have also updated the schools operational guide: 2024 to 2025 - Section 28: Growth funding - where we have provided further clarity on the primary growth factor value funding for all school types.

  9. Schools operational guide: 2024 to 2025 - we have updated 'Section 11.1: the amount that sparse schools receive' in reference to the maximum permissible value requirement.

  10. Schools operational guide: 2024 to 2025 - Section 8: Lower prior attainment (LPA) - we have identified and amended an error in reference to financial year 2024 to 2025 weightings for pupils in year 7 in October 2023 to advise users the weighting factor is yet to be confirmed.

  11. We have added a 'Further information' section at the bottom of the Pre-16 schools funding: local authority guidance for 2024 to 2025 GOV.UK landing page to direct users to relevant GOV.UK funding pages.

  12. First published.

This publication was withdrawn on

This page is now out of date.

See Pre-16 schools funding: local authority guidance for 2026 to 2027 for the latest information.

Applies to England

Documents

[WITHDRAWN] Schools operational guide: 2024 to 2025

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[WITHDRAWN] Growth and falling rolls fund guidance: 2024 to 2025

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[WITHDRAWN] The notional SEN budget for mainstream schools: operational guide 2024 to 2025

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[WITHDRAWN] Guidance for completing the disapplications form

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[WITHDRAWN] Allowable factor value ranges: 2024 to 2025

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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.

Schools revenue funding operational guide: 2024 to 2025

Local authorities and schools forums should use this guidance to plan the local implementation of the funding system for the 2024 to 2025 financial year.

Growth and falling rolls fund guidance: 2024 to 2025

Local authorities should use this guidance when setting up funds for growth or falling rolls. The guidance includes examples of approved criteria.

The notional SEN budget: operational guidance

This guidance has been written to help local authorities comply with the notional SEN budget requirement. Local authorities are required to identify a notional amount to guide mainstream schools in their spending to meet the costs of additional support for the school’s pupils with special educational needs.

Disapplication proforma: 2024 to 2025

There is now a digital form for all disapplication requests and it is important that local authorities complete all relevant forms before submitting. Further guidance is available in local authority disapplication request: completing the form.

All safety valve local authorities should contact safetyvalve.programme@education.gov.uk to discuss the appropriate route for submitting requests before proceeding.

Please refer to the movements between blocks section for further information on block transfer requests, including details of the supporting evidence we would expect to be submitted as part of the request.

Allowable factor value ranges: 2024 to 2025

We have published a spreadsheet which shows the allowable factor value ranges for each local authority in 2024 to 2025.

Further information

Read the high needs funding 2024 to 2025: operational guide for information for local authorities, schools and colleges about high needs funding arrangements for the 2024 to 2025 financial and academic year.

You can read the national funding formula for schools and high needs for further details of the NFF funding system for 2024 to 2025.

View the provisional national funding formula allocation tables for schools, high needs and central school services blocks for 2024 to 2025.

Read the schools operational guide: 2023 to 2024 for information about planning the local implementation of the funding system for the 2023 to 2024 financial year.

The authority proforma tool (APT) is designed to support local authorities in modelling different options for their funding formulae. It is also how local authorities submit details of their schools funding formulae to us, in accordance with arrangements set out by the Secretary of State for Education. The information submitted in the APT also allows us to calculate academy budgets and recoupment deductions to dedicated schools grant allocations. The APT for 2024 to 2025 is now available for local authorities to download.

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