Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the increase will be in funding for the National Tutoring Programme in the academic year 2023-24 following the decision to raise the subsidy rate to 50% for that year.

The National Tutoring Programme (NTP) is central to the Department’s £5 billion education recovery programme, which includes up to £1.5 billion on tutoring, £400 million on teacher training opportunities, and nearly £2 billion of direct funding to schools so they can deliver evidence-based interventions based on pupil needs. This support is especially focused on helping the most disadvantaged, vulnerable or those with the least time left in education, wherever they live.

The (NTP) makes available subsidised tutoring to boost progress of pupils who most need to catch up on education lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There is extensive evidence that tutoring is one of the most effective ways to accelerate academic progress. Since November 2020, over three million courses have been started through the NTP.

The Department has set the subsidy rate for the NTP for the 2023/24 academic year at 50%. This change is in response to schools’ concerns over previously announced funding arrangements, which included a 25% subsidy rate. The 50% subsidy rate announced on 23 May 2023 means that schools now need to contribute less of their core funding to provide tutoring.

The Department is providing £150 million for tutoring in the 2023/23 academic year. The funding each school receives is determined by their number of pupils eligible for the Pupil Premium. The funding provided next year is unchanged as a result of changing the subsidy rate at 50%, and brings the total funding for tutoring to £1 billion.