To meet the condition of funding from the academic year 2024 to 2025, learners will need to study eligible qualifications for a minimum number of hours per week.
For full-time students this will be a minimum of 3 hours per week for English and a minimum of 4 hours for maths, and pro rata for part-time students.
This applies to students:
- aged 16 to 18 (and 19 to 25 with an education, health and care (EHC) plan) who do not hold a GCSE grade 9 to 4 (a standard pass grade) or equivalent qualification in these subjects
- doing a programme of 150 hours or more, which started on or after 1 August 2014.
The qualifications that meet the condition of funding are GCSEs, Functional Skills level 2 and other ‘stepping stone’ qualifications.
Students with a grade 2 or below in maths or English can study towards a pass in Functional Skills level 2 or they can still study towards a GCSE grade 9 to 4. Once they have achieved this, there is no requirement to undertake further maths or English qualifications to meet the condition of funding. A student does not need to continue studying these qualifications with their current institution if these students have already achieved either with a previous institution. It is expected that a student studying an English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) qualification will progress onto an English and/or maths qualification approved to meet the condition of funding.
Part-time students with a grade 3 can study any qualification approved to meet the condition of funding as a stepping stone towards achieving a GCSE grade 9 to 4.
