The ESFA have the power to sanction providers if they consistently fail to comply with funding rules. An independent mock audit can highlight data issues and potential, systematic errors so that they can be addressed and rectified prior to an official ESFA audit.

The PAL compliance team has vast experience of administering and managing ESFA audits and will apply the same methodology to a mock audit as the ESFA use.

Non-judgemental feedback is provided throughout, as well as recommendations on action to take to improve controls, prevent error recurrence and ensure any additional, unclaimed funding is highlighted.

Any main provider or employer provider who subcontracts £100000 per year or more of ESFA funding must ensure that they have adequate controls in place for these arrangements, as detailed in the Subcontracting Standard.

The ESFA stipulates that these controls must be audited by an external organisation with appropriately qualified and experienced personnel.

PAL’s Audit and Compliance team provides this service to large and small providers using up to date knowledge of ESFA requirements and how they are applied.

Regular scrutiny of data and understanding what the data tells us is essential in order to identify and address potential anomalies.

PAL’s compliance team support providers by using various tools and reports, analysing the reports and highlighting areas that might need further investigation.

This scrutiny can be targeted at areas of highest potential risk and, once again, can also identify where valid funding has not been claimed.

Funding rules change regularly, meaning that training providers must update processes and procedures so that they’re fit for purpose. Compliance issues can arise where procedures are not robust, or are not sufficiently detailed to meet the evidence requirements of the funding rules.

PAL’s compliance team can undertake a full review of processes, procedures and recording mechanisms in order to highlight any areas that may need to be strengthened.

If needed, our team can support the design of new documentation and work-flows to ensure all evidence in scope of ESFA scrutiny provides a clear audit trail.

Please contact us to discuss your requirements – info@professionalassessment.co.uk

Funding rules should be clear and concise. However, the complexity of the rules and the regular updates they receive mean that it can be difficult to keep track. A simple misinterpretation can cause significant funding issues.

PAL’s compliance team can provide funding rule interpretation to complement the support from your ESFA relationship manager. This can be a short term input session or a longer-term retainer agreement where unused hours each month can be ‘banked’.

We have also produced a simple, cost-effective online resource that is kept up to date with the latest compliance information, updates, news and documents created by the team to support providers.

Please contact us to discuss your requirements – info@professionalassessment.co.uk

Where an ESFA audit detects any funding error in the sample selected, the ESFA require the provider to audit the remaining files not included in the audit, to determine the extent of the error. This can be costly to the provider in terms of diverting valuable staff time.

PAL can conduct these audits on your behalf, avoiding disruption to your business. As audit experts we can accurately determine what does constitute a funding error, avoiding you having to repay where alternative evidence exists.

ESFA audits sometimes result in disputes over findings.

Separate from audits, the ESFA conduct investigations into suspected irregularity.

Both scenarios can be distressing to encounter. It is easy to assume that ESFA audit are infallible. Our experience though is that there are times when constructive challenge is appropriate. In such times, it can be helpful to engage an independent expert.

PAL can support you to defend your business. Our extensive knowledge of the how the funding rules should be applied in practise has enabled providers to successfully challenge contentious audit findings, and curtail investigations from straying beyond the expectations of the rules, backing up assertions with appropriate evidence.

The ESFA Provider Financial Handbook for independent training providers came into effect from August 2024. It is a set of arrangements that cover governance, financial management and assurance of funding. It forms part of the ESFA’s assurance measures against the risk of provider failure. Compliance with the handbook is therefore essential for all providers. The requirements are tiered in terms of being mandatory, recommended or discretionary according to the value of funding received directly from DfE and ESFA. Our advice is to implement recommended and discretionary wherever practical.

PAL’s Director of Audit and Compliance is a former ESFA inspector of Financial management and Governance at FE providers at Ofsted inspections and is therefore highly experienced in reviewing provider’s arrangements to meet the handbook requirements.

PAL can support providers to meet the expectations of the handbook by:

• Explaining the requirements and assessing the sufficiency of your existing arrangements
• Becoming a non-executive member of your audit and risk committee
• Mock ESFA funding audits to cover the expectations of the funding compliance scrutiny function: Comprised of:
  • Controls questionnaire
  • Sample of learner files
  • PDSAT review
• Subcontracting standard audits
• Review of policies
• Internal controls review