The government has announced that the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) will be integrated into the Department for Education by March next year, to ensure that financial improvement is central to school improvement.
Since 2017, the ESFA has administered funding to deliver education and skills, from early years through to adulthood. Under the new structure, this work will continue, but will be delivered from within the department, giving education settings a single point of contact for financial management and support.
The government is determined to drive high and rising standards for every child, and effective financial management is a cornerstone for successful schools. To ensure financial improvement is central to school improvement, the ESFA’s Schools Financial Support and Oversight (SFSO) teams will move to Regions Group from 1 October. This will support the launch of Regional Improvement Teams by January 2025.
Other core functions will be moved into the department as part of the Operations and Infrastructure Group in March 2025, centralising the agency’s centres of excellence together with related functions in the department.
Establishing Regional Improvement Teams is a key element of the government’s plan for raising school standards – a single regulator model with governance and accountability sitting in one place. These teams will, from early 2025, work with struggling schools to quickly and directly address areas of weakness.
This new structure will therefore ensure the department is set up to deliver its priorities, while ensuring ESFA’s expertise, service delivery and functions are protected.
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