Further Education: Coronavirus

(asked on 7th July 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effect of covid-19 outbreak on agricultural colleges.


Answered by
Gillian Keegan Portrait
Gillian Keegan
Secretary of State for Education
This question was answered on 15th July 2020

We are aware of the financial impact COVID-19 has had on post-16 providers, including Agricultural Colleges.

We will continue to pay grant funded providers, including Agricultural Colleges, their scheduled monthly profiled payments for the remainder of the 2019/20 funding year and funding allocations for 2020/21 have been confirmed. Payments will be made in line with the national profile.

The funding system also provides a programme cost weighting uplift for agriculture courses delivered in eligible land-based settings, reflecting their higher costs.

For colleges in significant financial difficulties the exiting support arrangements remain in place, including short-term solvency support via emergency funding

The further education commissioner and his highly experienced team are able to talk through plans, concerns and issues. The department’s pool of National Leaders of Governance (NLGs) are also able to offer support. Local Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) teams are also providing support and enquiries can be submitted through the ESFA enquiries service.

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