Guidance

Post-16: intervention and accountability

Information about the intervention framework for post-16 education and skills providers.

Applies to England

Oversight

The Department for Education (DfE) allocates significant annual funding to providers of education and skills training for young people and adults. We hold providers to account for their performance to ensure they meet our requirements for financial sustainability and that they consistently raise standards.

In January 2021, DfE published Skills for Jobs: Lifelong Learning for Opportunity and Growth and introduced the Skills and Post-16 Education Bill. This set out a new approach in the way the government oversees the sector, provides support and where necessary, intervenes decisively to address serious issues. It also provided a framework for updated guidance on:

Whilst most of the approaches described in the published policy and supporting documentation are aligned, there are some differences in how they are implemented. This page highlights relevant information for each provider type.

A key source of reference for any provider is its own funding agreement, or contract for services. We will publish the core templates of these documents each year.

Colleges

The College Oversight: Support and Intervention policy document outlines the approach to managing risk in colleges. Its overall aim is to improve financial resilience and quality by incentivising and supporting college leaders to recognise issues and take early action.

Active support

College Oversight: Support and Intervention sets out a range of universal help and support for colleges from the FE Commissioner and DfE. This ‘active support’ replaces early intervention and prevention and opens up (to colleges not in intervention) the type and level of support that has previously only been available to a small section of the college sector.

The active support tools include, but are not limited to:

  • FE Commissioner-led Diagnostic Assessments
  • Local Provision Reviews
  • Support from National Leaders of Further Education (NLFEs ) and National Leaders of Governance (NLGs)
  • College Collaboration Fund
  • Independent Business Reviews
  • FE Commissioner-led structure and prospects appraisals
  • College Governor Financial Dashboards, and
  • FE Commissioner produced sector benchmarks

Intervention

The policy document confirms we are retaining intervention measures for the most serious cases – for colleges which do not improve, where issues remain and more serious action is required. Intervention replaces our previous category of Formal Intervention.

The policy document sets out the range of triggers that could lead to a college being placed into intervention. These include a set of 9 finance-driven triggers, alongside one Ofsted driven quality performance trigger.

DfE case managers will consider the context and circumstances of the case in exercising discretion where it is available to them. They will, however, be clear with the college, in writing, about the action they decide to take and the reasons for it. Where intervention is triggered, ESFA will implement DfE policy in line with any contract or funding agreement, which may override any information on this page where there are differences.

Independent training providers (ITPs)

We have published information on oversight for ITPs. This includes the implementation of interventions.

Where an ITP is graded overall inadequate by Ofsted, or meets one of the financial intervention triggers, they can expect to have their contracts terminated early, subject to protecting the interests of learners. Where we have evidence that learners’ interests would be best served by maintaining the contract we will only do so under strict conditions with rigorous monitoring, and we will seek to terminate the contract immediately if the ITP fails to improve.

Higher education institutions (HEIs)

We do not undertake financial assessments of higher education institutions (HEIs) that deliver FE provision, instead relying on those assessments completed by Office for Students (OfS). We will work with OfS where any serious issues are identified in relation to the financial sustainability of the FE provision, and will confirm any intervention actions that will be undertaken.

Where an HEI delivers FE provision that is in scope for inspection by Ofsted, we will take account of Ofsted’s inspection findings, including any published monitoring visits. Where an HEI receives an inadequate Ofsted judgement for its FE provision, the FE Commissioner may undertake an assessment of the capacity and capability of current FE provision leadership and management to lead improvement and make recommendations to the minister about appropriate intervention action.

Recommendations in any published Ofsted report, together with recommendations from published FE Commissioner reports will become additional conditions for continued funding. Non-compliance with these recommendations could result in further action.

Local authorities

We do not undertake financial assessments of local authorities (LAs) in respect of any ESFA funded provision. However, where we fund LAs to deliver FE provision that is in scope for inspection by Ofsted, we will take account of Ofsted’s inspection findings, including any published monitoring visits. As with colleges, where Ofsted judge an LA to be overall inadequate, the LA may be referred to the FE Commissioner for an assessment of the capacity and capability of the current education provision leadership and management to lead improvement, and make recommendations to the minister about appropriate intervention action.

Recommendations in any published Ofsted report, together with recommendations from published FE Commissioner reports will become additional conditions for continued funding. Non-compliance with these recommendations could result in further action.

Apprenticeship training providers (all provider types)

Ofsted inspection outcomes for apprenticeship provision may trigger intervention by DfE. Please refer to your own funding agreement or contract for services to understand how this will affect your apprenticeship funding.

In addition to financial and Ofsted intervention activities, the apprenticeship training provider accountability framework will apply to all apprenticeship provision from the academic year 2021 to 2022.

Non-maintained special schools (NMSS)

The financial health of a NMSS is assessed annually and we will intervene where the education performance at the NMSS is graded as inadequate.

More detail is set out in guidance on non-maintained special schools: intervention and accountability.

Special post-16 institutions for high needs students (SPI)

Special post-16 institutions (SPIs) have places commissioned and funded by local authorities and we fund them under a grant agreement. We assess the financial health of SPIs on the same basis as ITPs.

Where financial or education performance is at risk or underperforming we work in partnership with the home local authority in which the provider is located to take the right action subject to the circumstances and in the best interests of the placed learners.

Published 23 June 2014
Last updated 21 November 2022 + show all updates
  1. 'Apprenticeship training providers (all provider types)' has been updated in light of the withdrawal of the 'removal from the register of apprenticeship training providers' guidance.

  2. Updated to reflect the latest information on the intervention framework for post-16 education and skills providers.

  3. We have updated the intervention and accountability for 2019.

  4. A new section called New, direct funded, apprenticeship providers has been added.

  5. The page has been updated to include policy changes from November.

  6. General update to page to reflect ESFA.

  7. Updated information has been added.

  8. Financial health and control trigger updated

  9. Updated information added on new performance measures from 2016

  10. First published.