This document outlines the process through which the system processes financial statements upon receipt of declarations from lead providers via the Early Career Framework API.
These are the steps
- Provider submits a declaration.
- The system validates data.
- If invalid, errors are flagged up with corrective action suggestions.
- If valid, the declaration is created and linked to an output fee calculation.
- Service fees and banding are determined and applied.
- Final payments are calculated and displayed in the form of a financial statement for contract managers.
Contents
Lead providers reviewing financial statements
Lead providers checking which statement a declaration has been linked to
Working with participant bands
Contract manager logging in and viewing the bandings
Lead providers reviewing financial statements
A lead provider can view all statements using the GET api/v3/statements endpoint.
Example:
{
"data": [
{
"id": "cd3a12347-7308-4879-942a-c4a70ced400a",
"type": "statement",
"attributes": {
"month": "May",
"year": "2022",
"type": "ecf",
"cohort": "2021",
"cut_off_date": "2022-04-30",
"payment_date": "2022-05-25",
"paid": true,
"created_at": "2021-05-31T02:22:32.000Z",
"updated_at": "2021-05-31T02:22:32.000Z"
}
}
]
}Statement Attributes
Each statement in the response includes the following attributes:
| Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
month
|
string | false | The month which appears on the statement in the DfE portal |
year
|
string | false | The calendar year which appears on the statement in the DfE portal |
type
|
string | false |
Type of statement. Possible values: ecf
|
cohort
|
string | false | The cohort (2021 or 2022) which the statement funds |
cut_off_date
|
string | false | The milestone cut off or review point for the statement |
payment_date
|
string | false | The date we expect to pay you for any declarations attached to the statement, which are eligible for payment |
paid
|
boolean | false | Indicates whether the DfE has paid providers for any declarations attached to the statement |
created_at
|
string | false | The date the statement was created |
updated_at
|
string | false | The date the statement was last updated |
Lead providers checking which statement a declaration has been linked to
Lead providers can check for updates on the statement a declaration has been linked to and its status, via the endpoint GET /api/v3/statements/{id}, using the statement_id from the declaration response as {id}.
Working with participant bands
Given the data:
- Bands:
- Band A: 0 to 2000 participants
- Band B: 2000 to 4000 participants
- Band C: 4000 participants and up to a maximum of 115% of the contract’s target volume
- Previous participants: 2100
- Current participants: 2000
- Goal: Distribute these 2000 participants into the bands.
Breakdown
Previous Distribution:
- The first 2000 participants recruited in a cohort were in Band A.
- The next 100 participants (out of 2100) moved into Band B.
Current Distribution (2000 participants):
- Since all 2000 participants fit within Band A’s range (0–2000), Band A now has 0 participants.
- The remaining participants (from 2000 onwards) move into Band B and Band C:
- Band B starts at 2000. Since we need to place 2000 participants:
- 1900 fit into Band B (since the previous 100 were already in Band B, we adjust).
- The remaining 100 go into Band C.
Final Result:
| Band | Participants |
|---|---|
| Band A | 0 |
| Band B | 1900 |
| Band C | 100 |
This ensures the correct redistribution of participants across the defined bands.
Output Fee vs. Service Fee
Output fees
Declarations are paid upon submission. Output fees make up 60% of the price per participant, which lead providers can claim for participant training and submission of evidence of engagement via the API.
Service fees
Service fees make up 40% of the price per participant and are paid to lead providers monthly over the period the participant is being trained, based on lead provider recruitment targets.
Breakdown of fees for ECTs:
Example: How a price per participant of £1,000 is distributed between Service Fees and Output Fees:
Total Cost per ECT participant: £1,000
- This cost is split into Service Fees (40%) and Output Fees (60%).
1. Service Fee (£400, 40%)
- This is a fixed payment based on a provider’s recruitment target. If a provider recruits less than 75% of their target, the service fee will be reduced.
- The fee is distributed over time:
- 90% is paid over 29 months for standard-length inductions.
- 10% is paid over 40 months for non-standard-length inductions.
For the first 29 months of a contract, the provider receives:
- 3.103% of the total service fee each month (1/29th of 90%).
- By the end of these 29 months, they will have received 97.25% of the total service fee.
- 0.25% of the total service fee each month (1/40th of 10%) for the remaining 11 months.
2. Output Fee (£600, 60%)
- This is performance-based and only paid when participants reach specific training milestones.
- Breakdown:
- Start Payment: £120 (20% of Output Fee)
- Retention Payments: £90 each × 4 payments (15% of Output Fee each)
- Completion Payment: £120 (20% of Output Fee)
3. Extension Payment (£90, 15% of Output Fee)
- Additional payment if a participant requires extra support to complete training.
4. Conditions for Output Payments
- Suppliers must declare that a participant has met a milestone before payments are made.
- If a mentor or participant does not engage, some payments (like completion) may not be triggered.
This pricing model ensures that providers receive a fixed portion (Service Fee) while incentivizing them to support participants through key training milestones (Output Fee). Additional payments are available for extended training support.
Breakdown of fees for Mentors (from academic year 2025-26):
Unlike Early Career Teachers (ECTs), mentors are only paid via Output Fees, and pricing bands do not apply.
Total Cost per Mentor participant: £1,000
- The full amount is allocated to Output Fees.
Output Fee Breakdown
| Payment Type | Percentage | Amount | Condition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start Payment | 50% | £500 | Paid when a mentor starts training |
| Completion Payment | 50% | £500 | Paid when a mentor completes training |
- Mentor payments are fully performance-based.
- No fixed service fee is included.
- Payments are only made when training milestones (starting & completing) are met.
Contract manager logging in and viewing the bandings
A contract manager can log in to the service as a finance user and access participant declarations via the search participant data tab.
They can view details such as the:
- declaration type
- declaration date
- current state
- the last time the declaration was updated
A contract manager can also view all declarations that are due to be paid by accessing the financial statements as a finance user.
Contract managers can select the current training milestone and view the number of declarations, service fee, additional adjustments and clawbacks that are due to paid in the upcoming payment window.