51茶馆

1.Introduction

The school staff instructor (SSI) funding grant 2023 to 2024 (鈥済rant funding鈥�) will be paid by the Secretary of State for Education (鈥淪ecretary of State鈥�) to the local authority (鈥渁uthority鈥�), as a grant under section 14 of the Education Act 2002. In accordance with section 16 of that act, the Secretary of State attaches the following terms to the premium payable for the academic year 2023 to 2024. The local authority is required to distribute the grant funding to maintained schools鈥�^{[footnote 1]}that have a Combined Cadet Force (CCF) with an鈥�SSI鈥痠n post.聽

The grant funding for the 2023 to 2024 academic year is paid in a single instalment from the Secretary of State to local authorities as follows:

2023 to 2024 academic year	Payment date
September 2023 to August 2024	October 2023

2.听笔耻谤辫辞蝉别 of the grant funding

The grant funding once allocated to the school must be placed under the control of the聽SSI聽of the school鈥檚聽CCF. The grant funding meets the聽commitment to support SSIs聽and to confirm departmental support for achieving the government ambition of having 60,000 cadets in school cadet units. The grant funding matches the funding provided by the department for the academic years 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023.

The purpose of the funding is to enable an聽SSI聽to spend more time on cadet duties and associated聽SSI聽tasks, which, in turn will help to sustain the unit and the growth of cadet numbers.

3.听叠补蝉颈蝉 of allocation of the grant funding

The grant funding for the academic year 2023 to 2024 will replicate the funding paid by the department to local authorities in respect of SSIs in post in maintained schools that had a鈥�CCF鈥痠n previous academic years and is calculated as follows:

51 days (one day per week for 51 weeks) x 拢74.80 (daily rate) = 拢3814.80

The allocations for each school in the local authority that has a鈥�CCF鈥痺ith an鈥�SSI鈥痠n post will be published in October 2023 and include schools that were maintained schools on 1 September 2023.

In the case of a school which has appointed, or expects to appoint, an SSI during the 2023 to 2024 academic year, the school will be eligible for the grant only where a start date has been set on or before 29 February 2024. The rate payable will equate to the number of weeks left within the academic year from the date at which the SSI started, or is expected to start, in post. Payments will not be made for an SSI who has not started in post, or had a set start date, on or before 29 February 2024.

For example, if there were 30 weeks remaining, the amount payable would be 30 x 拢74.80.

Local authorities should not pay the grant funding to academies that converted before 1 September 2023, as they will receive their funding directly from鈥�ESFA.

The grant funding must be made available by the local authority to the school irrespective of the existence of any deficit relating to the expenditure of the school鈥檚 budget share. The grant funding is not part of schools鈥� budget shares and is not part of the individual school鈥檚 budget. It is not to be counted for the purpose of calculating the minimum funding guarantee.

4.听罢别谤尘蝉 on which the grant funding is allocated to schools

Local authorities must pass the grant funding to those maintained schools that have a鈥�CCF鈥痺ith an鈥�SSI鈥痠n post within one month of receipt and must require that those maintained schools comply with the terms set out below:

• the grant funding is only payable when a school that has a聽CCF聽has an聽SSI聽in post. Where an聽SSI聽holds this position for 2 (or more) separate CCFs they will be entitled to the grant funding for each of the CCFs
• the grant funding once allocated to the school must be placed under the control of the聽SSI聽of the school鈥檚聽CCF
• the grant funding is provided on the basis that it must only be used to fund the聽SSI聽to spend additional time in the performance of聽CCF聽duties and activities applicable to their role, therefore supporting the success and sustainment of the聽CCF聽and assisting with cadet growth

5.鈥疌别谤迟颈蹿颈肠补迟颈辞苍聽

Local authorities will be required to certify that they have passed on the correct amount of funding to schools which have a鈥�CCF鈥痺ith an鈥�SSI鈥痠n post and, where funding has been spent, that it has been spent in line with the terms set out above.聽

6.听痴补谤颈补迟颈辞苍

The basis for allocation of the grant funding may be varied by the Secretary of State from the terms set out in clause 4 above, if requested by the local authority or at the discretion of the Secretary of State.

7.听翱迟丑别谤 terms

If the local authority or a school fails to comply with the terms set out in the paragraphs above, including but not limited to the misuse of grant funding, the Secretary of State may require the recovery of the whole or any part of the grant funding paid to the school or the withholding of subsequent instalments of the grant funding.

This will be notified in writing to the local authority or school and any such sum that has been notified shall be recovered by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) on behalf of the Secretary of State from the authority or withheld from subsequent instalments of the grant funding.

8.听翱惫别谤辫补测尘别苍迟蝉

Any overpayment of the grant funding shall be recovered by聽ESFA聽on behalf of the Secretary of State from the authority.

9.听贵耻谤迟丑别谤 information

The books and other documents and records relating to the recipient鈥檚 accounts (for the purposes of this grant 鈥渞ecipient鈥� is the local authority or school) must be made available for inspection by the Secretary of State and the Comptroller and Auditor General.

The Comptroller and Auditor General may, under section 6 of the National Audit Act 1983, carry out examinations into the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which the recipient has used its resources in discharging its grant-aided activities.

The local authority or school must provide such further information as may be required by the Secretary of State for the purpose of determining whether, or to what extent, it has complied with the terms set out in this document. Failure to provide this information may result in the Secretary of State requiring repayment of the whole or any part of the grant funding paid to the local authority or the withholding of subsequent instalments of the grant funding.