Covid-19 workforce fund

FAO:All

Covid-19 workforce fund
The DfE has today announced that it is reintroducing the Covid-19 workforce fund, to “provide financial support to settings with the greatest staffing and funding challenges”. Guidance on eligibility for, and how to claim, this funding has also been published.
 
The eligibility criteria are similar to those used in the previous iteration of this fund. Key points are as follows:

  • The fund will help eligible schools cover the cost of workforce absences experienced from 22 November 2021 until the end of this term.
  • Funding is available for state-funded mainstream and special schools, and for alternative provision (AP) settings. Registered independent special schools and independent schools delivering AP are also eligible to claim for the staff they employ to support pupils whose placements are funded from local authorities’ high needs budgets.
  • Schools will be eligible for this additional funding if their reserves at the end of the funding year are down to a level of no more than 4% of their annual income. Trusts will be eligible to claim for any of their academies once their level of reserves is down to 4% of total trust income.
  • Schools must reach either of the absence thresholds set out in the guidance to be eligible. This means either an initial threshold of 20%, or a lower threshold of 10%, if absence levels are long-term. Costs can only be claimed for absences above, not at, the threshold. 
  • Schools and trusts will be able to make claims for costs eligible for reimbursement through this fund in spring 2022. The DfE will publish detailed guidance about the claims process then.

There is separate guidance for the Covid-19 workforce fund to support further education and sixth form colleges.