Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will guarantee programme income for (a) grant, (b) contracted and (c) other provider types until the end of the covid-19 outbreak.

We are very grateful for how further education (FE) providers are responding to the unique challenge of COVID-19. We recognise the financial impact that this is having on the FE sector and are working to make changes where we can.

We have confirmed that the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) will continue to pay grant-funded providers their scheduled monthly profiled payments for the remainder of the 2019/20 funding year. Allocations for 2020/21 have now also been confirmed and payments will be made as scheduled. Up-to-date details are contained in operational guidance available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-further-education-provision.

For colleges in significant financial difficulties, the existing support arrangements remain in place, including short-term emergency funding.

In addition, we have been regularly liaising with the sector. On 24 April 2020, we published details of a provider relief scheme that will offer targeted financial support for training providers. This is designed to retain capacity within the apprenticeships and adult education sector to deliver the skills that we need to support economic recovery. As part of that, we want to maintain support for existing learners and employers and to enable new learners to enrol. Full details of the scheme are available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/esfa-post-16-provider-relief-scheme.

This is in addition to the series of wider measures to support employers and employees set out by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 3 April. Details are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/financial-support-for-businesses-during-coronavirus-covid-19.

We are continuing to work through remaining issues on provider funding.