The ultimate guide to tuition funding for schools 2023/24
We know that funding can be a complicated issue for schools. And when it comes to funding tutoring, a common piece of feedback we hear is that it's hard to understand what's available and how to use it. That's where we're here to help!
Through our work with 1300+ schools throughout the UK, and a lot of digging through government guidance, we’ve compiled an ultimate guide to how schools can fund personalised tutoring for the pupils who need it most.
Tutoring is a highly effective intervention that supports learners and builds confidence. According to research from the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF), it's one of the most impactful and cost-effective ways to help improve your pupils' progress and bridge attainment gaps. It found that with targeted small-group tutoring, pupils made an additional 4 months of progress.
We understand that school budgets are stretched tight, so finding the right funding for tutoring is essential. Thankfully, there are multiple pots of funding available that thousands of schools across the country are already accessing. In this guide, we'll talk you through each of them and help you find the funding option that's right for your school.
Everything you need to know about the National Tutoring Programme (NTP)
First up, let's look at the National Tutoring Programme, answering all of your frequently asked questions.
What is the National Tutoring Programme?
The National Tutoring Programme, or NTP, is a ring-fenced pot of money that schools can use to pay for tutoring from approved NTP Partners (like us!).
NTP funding is available to subsidise tuition from Key Stage 1 to Key Stage 4, and is intended to help narrow attainment gaps for disadvantaged pupils, as well as improve their academic performance.
The NTP is now running for its fourth and final year. So schools need to make the most of their allocated funding in 2023/24.
How do I join the National Tutoring Programme?
The great thing about the NTP is that eligible schools don’t need to apply to join the programme and receive the grant, they automatically get it.
Why is that important? Because you don’t need to navigate and fill out long, complex application forms just to be considered. If you’re eligible, you’ll receive the NTP funding: it’s as simple as that.
How much money will my school get via the NTP and how is it paid?
NTP funding is paid over the course of the academic year in termly instalments. It is paid by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) directly to all state-funded non-maintained special schools and academies. State-funded maintained schools are paid by their local authority.
Maintained schools should have already received the first instalment in September, with the second due in December, and the third in April. Academies and non-maintained schools should receive their instalments in October, January, and May.
The amount of NTP funding a school receives is based on the number of Pupil Premium eligible pupils enrolled, as of last year’s school census. The Department for Education (DfE) has published the NTP allocations for the 2023/24 academic year online.
This year, the National Tutoring Programme will fund 50% of the cost of tuition, so that's up to £9 per pupil per hour for an £18 lesson and up to your full funding allocation.
Don’t forget: any NTP funds left over at the end of the academic year are recovered by the ESFA, so make sure you use all possible funding before the year is out.
For a free bespoke report on what funding is available to your school, complete our School Tutoring Calculator:
What can I use the NTP money for?
Your school can use the NTP grant to access tuition via three routes:
- School-led tutoring, delivered through your own staff
- Academic Mentors
- NTP-approved Tuition Partners (see below)
While schools are encouraged to use the funding to primarily support Pupil Premium pupils, they can also use it to support any other pupils they feel would benefit from tuition support.
Who you choose to offer tutoring to is entirely up to you, which allows you to use your full NTP funding allocation and maximise its impact in your school.
What is a Tuition Partner?
Tuition Partners, like MyTutor, are external providers who’ve been approved by the NTP to deliver tuition via the programme.
These Tuition Partners have undergone a thorough quality assurance process to certify that they can deliver tutoring to a high standard.
MyTutor has now been an NTP Tuition Partner for 4 years running, since the National Tutoring Programme was first introduced. We've delivered over 1 million lessons to pupils in 1300+ schools through 1:1 and 3:1 tuition. You can read some of our partner school case studies on our blog.
How has the NTP changed from last year (22/23)?
This year (2023/24) the NTP subsidy has been reduced to cover 50% of the cost of a tuition programme, down from 60% in 2022/23 and 70% in 2021/22.
However, considering that it was originally announced that this year’s funding would be drastically cut to 25%, the revised figure of 50% should make a much greater impact.
Is the NTP the same as the Schools-Led Tutoring Grant (SLTG)?
In short, no.
The SLTG was introduced in the 2021/22 academic year to cover the cost of tutoring provided directly by school staff and was originally intended to be entirely separate from the NTP. SLTG funds could not be put towards any non-subsidised part of the NTP.
However, for the 2022/23 academic year, school-led tutoring was incorporated into the National Tutoring Programme, allowing for NTP funds to be used for this purpose, and the School-Led Tutoring Grant was withdrawn.
How do I cover the remaining 50% of tuition costs?
This is a question that many school leaders ask, and rightly so.
The amount schools receive via the NTP grant is intended to subsidise 50% of the average cost of tutoring, which means schools are expected to cover the remaining 50% using other pots of money.
Having worked with many partner schools since the inception of the NTP, we’ve found that one of the most common ways schools fund the remaining 50% of tuition is through their Pupil Premium funding.
This year, the Pupil Premium allocation has increased again (more on Pupil Premium allocations below) and while there are other budgets available, Pupil Premium tends to be the first choice for many schools.
In addition, schools that are looking to reach as many pupils as possible tend to prefer small group tuition (3:1) over 1:1 as it's a more cost-effective solution.
Can the NTP be used for both 3:1 and 1:1 tuition?
Yes!
3:1 tuition programmes (otherwise known as small group tuition) can offer the best value for money and allow schools to reach the most pupils with tuition support. Your NTP grant can be used for either or a combination of both 3:1 and 1:1 tutoring.
What is the minimum course length that the NTP can be used for?
The DfE recommends that NTP tutoring courses be 12-15 hours long to have a meaningful impact on pupil attainment.
At MyTutor, we offer 12-week programmes that easily slot into a term, as well as shorter and more tailored programme options that support resits, mocks and exams.
What subjects can pupils access with the NTP?
Secondary schools can use the NTP for the majority of subjects including: Maths, English, Science, Humanities, and Modern Foreign Languages. This means your grant can support a wide range of subjects where tutoring is a highly effective intervention.
What do I need to report for the NTP?
As part of the National Tutoring Programme requirements, schools need to record the total cost of their tuition programmes and the number of tutoring hours delivered, sharing this information with the DfE in a funding return in summer 2024. Schools are encouraged to record:
- The total number of Pupil Premium eligible pupils who have received tuition
- The total number of other pupils who have received tuition
- The total number of tutoring hours provided to Pupil Premium pupils
- The total number of tutoring hours provided to other pupils
- The type of tutoring provided (i.e. school-led tutoring or tutoring from a tuition partner)
You will also be asked to provide:
- Your termly school census (for October 2023, January 2024, and May 2024)
- Your mandatory year-end statement (available summer 2024)
What happens if I don’t spend all of my NTP Grant?
Unfortunately, any NTP funding that goes unused at the end of this academic year will be recovered by the Education and Skills Funding Agency, which is why it’s so important to make sure you use all of your allocated NTP Grant.
What will the NTP subsidy be next year?
As it stands, the Department for Education has no plans to extend the National Tutoring Programme past the 2023/24 academic year. Of course, this may change and we'll be available to update schools as soon as information becomes available.
How long will the NTP last?
Unless plans change or the government alters their current stance on NTP funding, this will be the last year that the National Tutoring Programme will be available.
Everything you need to know about the 16-19 Tuition Fund
Next up, let's take a look at the 16-19 Tuition Fund and find out how this ring-fenced funding can support your learners.
What is the 16-19 Tuition Fund?
As the name suggests, the 16-19 Tuition Fund is ring-fenced funding available to schools, colleges, and other FE institutions to support disadvantaged pupils aged 16-19 through tutoring.
This pot of money was made available for the first time in 2020 to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on learning and has been available ever since.
How does the 16-19 Tuition Fund work?
To access the 16-19 funding allocation, schools new to the fund needed to opt-in by submitting a form at the beginning of the Autumn term. The deadline for this academic year is the 20th of October.
Schools that have already opted in in previous years should receive their allocation automatically, without the need for any paperwork.
Once you have opted in, the 16-19 Tuition Fund gets paid directly to your school in three instalments throughout the academic year, much like NTP funding.
How much funding does each pupil get?
It's difficult to say exactly how much 16-19 funding will be allocated to each individual pupil, as it is calculated using a set of criteria and will depend on whether a pupil is placed into ‘band one disadvantage’ or ‘band two disadvantage’.
However, the good news is that the 16-19 Tuition Fund has increased this year.
Your school should have learnt how much funding you’ve been allocated at the beginning of the year if you’ve already opted in or you were eligible for auto-renewal. If not, you should receive notification of your allocation soon after opting in.
Which pupils are eligible for the 16-19 Tuition Fund?
Pupils eligible for the 16-19 Tuition Fund include:
- Those who have not achieved grade 6 in GCSE English and/or Maths
- Those needing catch-up support from the 27% most economically deprived areas
- Economically disadvantaged pupils who are eligible for the 16-19 Bursary Fund
- Those aged 19-24 with an Education, Health, and Care (EHC) plan that meet the eligibility for the fund
What can I use the 16-19 Tuition Fund to pay for?
The clue is in the name. The 16-19 Tuition Fund can only be used to support pupils by funding tuition activities.
This tuition can be provided by school staff or an external tuition provider (like MyTutor!).
You can use your funding allocation to cover the cost of:
- Small group (3:1) and 1:1 tuition
- Tuition in English, Maths, and other academic subjects
- Tuition in non-academic subjects, like exam preparation
- Tuition in vocational courses
In addition to this, the 16-19 Tuition Fund can also be put towards pastoral support, including mental health and wellbeing, for eligible SEND pupils and pupils aged 19-24 with an EHC plan. However, clear evidence of the justification for the need for this additional support must be provided.
What do I need to report for the 16-19 Tuition Fund?
As a requirement of the funding, you’ll need to record where your pupils have received support using the 16-19 Tuition Fund within the Individualised Learner Record (ILR) and school census.
You should also record:
- Which pupils need the support and what are their needs
- The total number of hours of tuition delivered
- The providers that you partnered with to deliver the tuition
Although this involves a little admin, it’s worth the effort to receive the extra funds and, if you’ve used the 16-19 Tuition Fund before, there’s a lot less admin to do than if you were applying for the first time.
What happens if I don’t spend all of my 16-19 Tuition Grant?
Much like with the National Tutoring Programme, it’s important to remember that any money left over from the 16-19 Tuition Grant at the end of the year will not carry over to the following year. Any unspent funding will be reclaimed, so make sure you use all of your available funding.
Can I combine the 16-19 Tuition Fund with the National Tutoring Programme?
No. The National Tutoring Programme provides tuition funding for pupils up to Year 11, whereas the 16-19 Tuition Fund is provided for post-GCSE pupils in 16-19 institutions.
Everything you need to know about using Pupil Premium to fund tuition
What is Pupil Premium?
Pupil Premium is a government grant provided to both state-funded primary and secondary schools to help improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged pupils.
This academic year, the total spending for Pupil Premium has increased to nearly £2.9 billion.
What can Pupil Premium be spent on?
Pupil Premium can be spent on the following three areas:
- Teaching support, like professional development of staff
- Resolving non-academic barriers, like attendance, social and emotional well-being, and behaviour
- Targeted academic support, such as tutoring
How much is Pupil Premium per pupil in 2023/24?
The good news is that Pupil Premium funding rates have increased for the 2023/24 academic year. This year, Pupil Premium funding for eligible secondary school pupils starts from £1,035 per Pupil Premium pupil.
Can Pupil Premium be used to cover online tutoring?
Absolutely!
One of the three spending areas that the Department for Education has set for Pupil Premium is targeted academic support, which covers tutoring. Many of our partner schools use a combination of Pupil Premium and other funds to cover tutoring for their pupils.
Can I combine Pupil Premium with the National Tutoring Programme?
Another yes!
The EEF has recognised tuition as a high impact intervention for disadvantaged pupils, and many of our partner schools invest their Pupil Premium funding to make up the remaining shortfall after National Tutoring Programme funding is used. In fact, this is the most common way schools fund tutoring with MyTutor.
Everything you need to know about using Recovery Premium to fund tuition
What is Recovery Premium?
Recovery Premium is a government funding programme set up to help support pupils whose education was impacted by the pandemic. It was originally introduced in 2021/22 with a pot of over £300 million, and this was increased to £1 billion for the 2022/23 and 2023/24 academic years.
The amount that eligible schools receive, much like with other forms of funding, is based on Pupil Premium eligibility. The rates per eligible pupil start at £145 for primary schools and £276 for secondary schools.
In addition to this, there is a minimum payment that all eligible schools will receive, regardless of the number of eligible pupils in attendance, which is set at £2000 for primary schools and £6000 for secondary schools.
Can I use Recovery Premium to pay for tutoring?
Yes, absolutely!
Recovery Premium spending criteria are exactly the same as Pupil Premium and, as such, can definitely be used to fund the cost of providing high-quality online tuition.
Can I combine Recovery Premium with the National Tutoring Programme?
Unfortunately, not. You cannot use Recovery Premium to cover the remaining 50% of the costs of tuition after allocating the National Tutoring Programme funding.
What many schools find is a very effective way to manage their funding budgets to cover the cost of tuition is to use NTP funding in combination with their Pupil Premium budget. They then use their Recovery Premium funding to fill the gaps left in their Pupil Premium budget and cover costs they previously used their Pupil Premium funds for.
With some clever budget reorganisation, government funding can be used incredibly effectively to cover the full cost of tutoring and still be used in other areas to support your pupils.
There we have it; the 4 most common methods used to fund tutoring. Used in combination, these funding pots can provide effective tutoring support for your pupils that boosts confidence, improves grades and closes attainment gaps.
