Age Eligibility

It depends which funding stream you are referring to.  Your learner would not be eligible for ASF until 01/08/2025.  

I'd like to ask a related question.  

There are two issues here:  
(1) Age on 31st August in the teaching year of start.  
I think that all learners funded by the ASF must be aged 19+ on 31st August in the academic year of start, without exception.  I think this also applies to tailored learning (the old community learning used to have a lower age limit:  learners had to be aged 19+ on the learning start date).  
Am I correct about this?  

2) Age band 19 to 23 or 24+
The funding rules have different eligibilities for the age bands 19 to 23 and 24+, but they do not define the reference date for calculating the learner age.  
I think that the learner age on the learning start date is always used to determine the relevant age band for eligibility.  
Am I correct about this?  

I think this might be the learner who had a break to have a baby Helen Wilshaw ?

If its an 16-18 SP learner then you are fine. 

This learner would be starting on a Study programme. 

44: A 16 to 18 year old student is a student who is aged 16, 17 or 18 on 31 August 2024. Such students are normally eligible for ESFA young people’s funding, subject to the other regulations in this guidance.

45: To maintain eligibility for funding for individual students during a learning programme, a wider definition is used by the funding bodies. A student who was aged 16, 17 or 18 on 31 August at the start of the funding year when they began a learning programme, as recorded on their learning agreement, continues to be funded as a 16 to 18-year-old student. If they become 19 years old during their learning programme such students are funded at 16 to 18 rates to complete their learning programmes.

Thanks for that Chris.  I had read this in the guidance but my colleague thought because she was already 19 at the start of the programme she thought she couldnt start so just wanted a bit more clarification. Helen