Funding for training and qualifications

Non-regulated staff employed by an adult social employer, which includes deputy and registered managers, agency staff, care support workers, activities coordinators, personal assistant (if employed by an ASC employer) and many more. 

Staff with a certificate of sponsorship are eligible for funding, as long as they are legally employed in England and have a national insurance number. There is no requirement for them to have spent a certain number of years in this country.

• Courses and qualifications started and paid for between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025 

• Only courses delivered by eligible organisations on the list published here https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/adult-social-care-learning-and-development-support-scheme/eligible-training-courses-and-qualifications 

• Apprenticeship qualifications are not eligible. This is because the apprenticeship levy already covers some of an apprenticeship, and the LDSS is about targeting funding at areas that don’t have other funding streams  

• The amount reimbursed is the amount for training only, as invoiced by the training provider. It cannot be used to cover the backfill. 

• Claims for eligible training will be paid in full. Claims for eligible qualifications will be split between 60% at the start and 40% once the course is completed.
• There is a maximum reimbursement amount for each item on the list of eligible courses, per learner. For example, the Level 2 Care Certificate is stated as having a maximum reimbursement of £1500 per learner for this qualification.
• The course list could change as it will be informed by work underway by Skills for Care to look at quality within care learning and training (Quality Assured Care Learning Service).

Timeframes vary depending on whether it’s training or a qualification. For training, you will get reimbursement in one amount on completion. For qualifications, you will get 60% once the qualification has been started and paid for, and the remaining 40% on completion. It will take between 2-6 weeks for reimbursement to come through. 

• Claims are administered by NHS-BSA for 2024 to 2025. To claim from scheme, you must first complete an expression of interest form https://online1.snapsurveys.com/Interview/d7ae4538-4f3d-4090-ab7b-590351e41991wait to be contacted by NHSBSA to be onboarded onto the system. 

• Claims are made after a learner completes an eligible course  

• You will need to show that course fees have been paid in full 

• Funding is paid to the employer, not the training provider 

There’s no cap on the number of staff members who can do training funded by LDSS, but the maximum amount that an employer can claim between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025 is £400,000. If you have more than one service within your organisation the £400,000 cap applies to the family of organisations as a whole, across all your services. Organisations must track their own claims, to make sure they don’t exceed this cap, as excess claims will not be reimbursed. 

Princess Alice Hospice offers a range of online and face-to-face courses for individuals or teams.

The Surrey Skills Academy courses are available to all adult social care providers based in Surrey. An excellent range of courses is offered, free of charge.

New course dates are published at the beginning of the month ending each quarter – March, June, September, December.

Places are limited and book up quickly, so we recommend checking the course listings page regularly.