Education and Skills Funding Agency

The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) funds skills training for further education (FE) in England. It supports over 2,000 colleges, private training organisations, and employers with £3.6 billion of funding each year. The ESFA is responsible for giving colleges, training organisations and employers the right funding to help adults, young people, the unemployed and people with low skill levels to get the skills they need for employment. This includes:• funding and coordinating apprenticeships throughout England• running the National Careers Service, which gives impartial, professional advice on careers, skills and training• overseeing and managing Advanced Learner Loans • being a co-financing organisation for the European Social Fund (ESF) in England, which is investing in jobs and skillsThe ESFA also:• maintains Individualised Learner Record (ILR) data• publishes data and datasets to support planning and performance reporting in FE • supports the Learning Records Service, who maintain Unique Learner Numbers (ULNs) and Personal Learning Records (PLRs)