The Job Outcome Incentive Payment (OIP) Fund
January 6, 2012 in The information authority Blog by Greta
As we start the new year we thought we’d take a look back over 2011, to see which issues have been cropping up in conversations in our advisory groups and write a blog post or two around these topics…
Towards the end of last year we became aware that there were a number of providers unsure of how job outcome incentive payments (OIPs) are paid and exactly what is expected of them in 2011/12. So, we thought it might be useful to point people towards the Skills Funding Agency’s OIP guidance.
There have been three documents published so far that include information you may find helpful. You will find the bulk of the detail about how providers are being paid for employment outcomes for 2011/12 in paragraphs 123 to 134 of version 1.1 of the 2011/12 Adult Skills Budget Funding Requirements.
Other relevant information can be found in paragraphs 24 to 32 of the Skills Funding Agency Guidance Note eight and in Update (issue 86), the Agency’s weekly round up of information and news for the further education sector.
In essence, the guidance to date states that OIPs for colleges are paid from within their allocation – no additional claims are required. Private training providers use the Training Provider Statement (TPS) to claim 2.5% of their monthly allocation. All providers are asked to record job outcomes in the Employment Outcome field in the ILR. We are working with the Agency to clarify the guidance around recording job outcomes.
If there is a topic you would like us to blog about please leave us a comment and let us know.
This week’s news round up:
The Chair of the information authority, Geoff Hall, has been awarded a knighthood in the 2012 New Year’s Honour’s List. Geoff, formerly Principal and Chief Executive of New College Nottingham, received the honour of Knight Bachelor for services to further education.
John Perks, Head of the information authority, will be speaking at the Association of Colleges MIS Managers Network meeting in Shrewsbury on Tuesday 10 January
The Data Service will be publishing the end of year 2010/11 Employer Responsive (Period 15) Qualification Success Rate (QSR) and Minimum Level of Performance (MLP) reports on the Provider Gateway on Thursday 12 January.
All the best
Greta
When will we have definitive ILR guidance around recording job outcomes i.e. what constitutes an “Employment outcome (with/without training)” and what evidence providers are expected to retain?
The later we get into this current academic year, the harder it will be to get retrospective evidence for learners that have already completed
Chris
Hi Chris, I have consulted on this issue with my colleague Lisa Macdougall who tells me that at present the Skills Funding Agency have not specified any criteria for what can or can’t be counted as a job outcome and are unlikely to do so for 11/12, as the payment of the 2.5% of your allocation is not linked directly to the number of job outcomes that occur this year but is more of a development fund.
Hi Chris,
The requirement for A68 is:
This field should be completed only for learning aims which are either part of a programme that is funded to deliver employment outcomes or a programme where separate employment outcome payments are made.
You could assume as this year funding in only development funding then there is no need to complete A68 as this year no outcome payments will be made and therefore no evidence will be required.
If Creta could confirm if this is the case then we only have to wait for the guidance next year.
Martin
Hi Martin, at present the Skills Funding Agency have asked that all employment outcomes, where known, are recorded in the ILR for learners on benefits. Hope this helps, Greta
I cant find “Job Outcome”, field A68 on POL ILR. Presumably it’s not applicable to Apprenticeships, but previous guidance states “All providers are asked to record job outcomes in the Employment Outcome field in the ILR”.
Hi Peter,
As Greta said ‘for learners on benefits’ you are correct it’s not applicable to Apprenticeships as they are employed.
Hi Peter, I asked Lisa, our data spec manager, about your query and she says…
The employment outcome field is not collected for apprenticeship learners and so is not on the POL form. If the learner is unemployed when they start an apprenticeship programme and gain a job during their apprenticeship then a new employment status record (of type Current Employment status) should be added to indicate that they have now become employed.
Hope this clarifies the issue.
Cheer, Greta
Thanks