Complete the Care to Learn and 16 to 19 Bursary Fund for defined vulnerable groups funding claim
Source: gov.uk (2025-10-15)

How Department for Education (DfE) funded 16 to 19 providers can make a funding claim for these schemes

Introduction

From academic year 2025 to 2026, we’ve changed the delivery model for this funding. There is no longer an external Student Bursary Support Service (SBSS) contractor to process applications and make payments.

There will be 3 separate claim windows for academic year 2025 to 2026 as follows:

Autumn 2025 - The first funding claim window will open on 8 September 2025 and close on 12 November 2025. This is the window in which we expect most of you to submit funding claims. We will pay you in February 2026 (March 2026 for academies) after we have completed all checks, validations, and quality assurance processes.

Winter - The second funding claim window will open on 5 January 2026 and close on 11 February 2026. You will be able to submit any new funding claims in this period, but it is important to note that you will not be able to adjust any claims you have already submitted. We will pay you in April 2026 (May 2026 for academies) after we have completed all checks and quality assurance processes.

End of year reconciliation for academic year 2025 to 2026 - The third and final window will open on 18 May 2026 and close on 1 July 2026. All institutions submitting claims for Care to Learn (C2L) must submit data for end of year reconciliation. You may also submit any late new funding claims for both schemes if you need to. We will action any recovery of funds and make any final additional payments in September 2026 (October 2026 for academies).

You must complete the digital form (#accessing_the_form) to claim funding. If you are claiming for both C2L and VB, you will need to complete 2 separate forms.

Care to Learn

The C2L scheme provides funding for childcare to help young parents (defined as those aged under 20 years old at the start of their programme) continue in education after the birth of a child. The C2L academic year 2025 to 2026 conditions of grant funding (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/care-to-learn-guidance) explains the scheme in full.

16 to 19 Bursary Fund for defined vulnerable groups (VB)

This fund provides financial support to help students overcome the specific financial barriers to participation they face so they can remain in education. The 16 to 19 Bursary Fund guide for academic year 2025 to 2026 (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-bursary-fund-guidance) explains the VB in full.

Who this guide is for

This guide is for settings who need to claim C2L and/or VB funding for eligible students in the autumn 2025 funding claim window for academic year 2025 to 2026. This is the window in which we expect most of you to submit funding claims.

For the vulnerable bursary element of the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund, maintained special schools, including community special and foundation special schools, must contact their local authority who will submit a claim on their behalf.

When to complete your submission

The deadline to complete and submit your form(s) for the autumn 2025 claim window is 5pm on Wednesday, 12 November 2025.

You can amend your submissions up until the deadline. We cannot grant any extensions. You must wait until the next window in January 2026 to submit any claims after the autumn deadline.

Accessing the form

Please read the sections below before accessing before submitting the claim. This is the link to the digital form (https://digital-forms.education.gov.uk/jw8p_b3jpi/16-to-19-funding-care-to-learn-c2l-and-16-to-19-bursary-fund-for-defined-vulnerable-groups-vb-funding-claims).

Before you start

To access this digital collection, you need to have an active DfE Sign-in account (https://services.signin.education.gov.uk) that is linked to your organisation. If you have not used DfE Sign-in before you will need to create an account (https://profile.signin.education.gov.uk/register).

DfE Sign-in

Sign in to your DfE Sign-in account

Follow the below steps to access the form via your DfE Sign-in account:

Access the online form and when prompted, enter your DfE Sign-in (https://services.signin.education.gov.uk/) credentials (your username and password) for authentication.

Choose the organisation that you are completing the form for – this is only required if your account is linked to several organisations.

The next page will display the details we hold about the organisation you selected when you signed in. This will show the name, address, and unique identifier of the local authority, as well as the name and email address of the person who signed into DfE Sign-in.

If these details are correct, select ‘Continue’ to go to the next page.

If you believe these details are incorrect, contact us via the customer help portal (https://customerhelpportal.education.gov.uk/) and we will investigate. However, you can still proceed with your submission.

To complete the form, your DfE sign-in account must be connected to the organisation you are completing the form for.

You do not need to add any services in DfE Sign-in; it is used only for authentication.

If you experience any issues at this initial stage, please seek direct help from our dedicated DfE Sign-in help service (https://help.signin.education.gov.uk/dashboard) where you will be able to request further assistance. When raising a support request, select ‘other’.

If you do not have a DfE Sign-in account

You will need to create one by completing steps 1 to 7 below:

Access DfE Sign-in page (https://services.signin.education.gov.uk/) and select ‘create a DfE Sign-in account.’ On the next page, select ‘No account? Create one’.

Enter your name and email address. You must use a valid business email address that contains your name – please note, we are unable to accept generic emails, such as ‘admin’ or ‘info’. You cannot use a personal email address.

We will send you an email to verify your email address. Copy the code from this email and paste it into the box on the verification page.

Create a memorable password that is a minimum of 8 characters and contains 3 out of: lowercase characters, uppercase characters, numbers, symbols. Enter your given name and surname.

Sign in using your new credentials. Request your multi-factor authentication (MFA) verification email by clicking on “Email code to [your email address]” on the verify your identity page.

We will send you an MFA email to verify your identity. Copy the code from this email and paste it into the box on the verification page.

Follow the next step instructions outlined in ‘Adding an organisation to your DfE Sign-in account’ below.

Once your request to access an organisation has been approved, you can follow the steps outlined under already have a DfE account (#Sign_in) to complete the form.

You may have noticed the term ‘approver’ when creating your account. An approver is someone at your organisation responsible for controlling who has access to DfE Sign-in and the services within the system. It is usually a senior person, such as a manager.

For security reasons, you will need authorisation from one of your organisation’s approvers before you can access the form.

Adding an organisation to your DfE Sign-in account

To add a new organisation to your DfE Sign-in account, follow steps 1 to 6 below:

Login to your DfE Sign-in account.

Select ‘Organisations’ from the tab at the top of the page.

Select ‘Request access to an organisation’ from the ‘Related actions’ on the righthand side of the page.

Enter the name of the organisation you wish to add.

Select the organisation.

Select ‘Confirm.’

Your request will be sent to the approver(s) of your organisation. If you do not already have an approver your request will be actioned by the DfE Sign-in support team.

Once your request to access an organisation has been approved, you will be able to access the form.

If you need further assistance with DfE Sign-in

Use our DfE Sign-in help service (https://help.signin.education.gov.uk/dashboard) to request assistance. When raising a support request, select ‘other’.

If you are having problems accessing the form collection, you can contact us through our customer help portal (https://customerhelpportal.education.gov.uk).

Completing the forms

Once authenticated through DfE Sign-in, you will find a portal that lists links to the form(s) your organisation is in scope to complete as below:
- Care to Learn (C2L)
- 16 to 19 Bursary fund for defined vulnerable groups (VB)
When you select a form from the portal, you will find a ‘save and continue’ button that will take you through each page of the form. If you sign out of the form, or leave it opened for an extended period before submitting it, you can resume your submission when you sign back in, clicking back to where you left, and the digital portal will record the status of your form completion accordingly.

Once you have submitted a form, you will be advised of next steps and will receive an email confirmation of your submission with a link to download a PDF copy of your submission. This link will expire after 6 months, so you should download a copy as soon as possible.

The digital portal will record the status of your form submission(s), you can edit and resubmit your form(s) until the submission deadline for the autumn 2025 window.

Further details on how to complete each form are outlined below:

Your details (applicable to both forms)

This page will display the details we hold about the organisation you selected when you signed into your DfE Sign-in account.

Care to Learn (C2L) – autumn 2025 claim form

This read-only page shows information about C2L funding and completion of the form. Your claim will be reviewed and used to assess payment of C2L funding.

The C2L academic year 2025 to 2026 conditions of grant funding (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/care-to-learn-guidance) explains the scheme in full.

Before you start

Before you start the submission process, please ensure that you have collated the:
- number of students you are claiming C2L for
- total amount you are claiming for childcare
- total amount you are claiming for registration fees
- total amount you are claiming for travel costs
- total amount you are claiming for summer retainers for summer 2026
You must also have the authority to make the claim on behalf of your organisation.

The amount of funding you request must be the amount you have assessed is required for the full academic year. You will be required to submit end of year data for reconciliation.

Student funding

You must ensure you have assessed, and have evidence to support, the eligibility of the student and their childcare as well as ensuring the education provision meets the criteria.

Childcare funding

You should provide the total amount of C2L eligible childcare costs incurred by the eligible students. This must not exceed the permitted maximum amounts. Do not include registration fees, travel, summer retainers, or administration costs as we will ask you about these later in the form.

Other costs

C2L can also pay for registration fees, travel costs, and summer retainer fees. If you have an eligible claim for any or all of these areas please check Yes, otherwise check No.

Other costs details

Please select all the categories of costs you are eligible to claim for.

Registration fees for childcare providers

C2L will pay registration fees charged by a childcare provider, up to a maximum of £80 per child. This is a one-off payment and does not form part of the weekly maximum amount.

Do not include deposits as these form part of the weekly maximum amounts and you should have included them in the total childcare amount.

Travel costs funding

C2L will pay for travel costs where appropriate and if these are additional costs that are necessary for the student to take their child(ren) between childcare and home. Travel costs are only applicable if the childcare and education are delivered at separate locations.

Summer retainer costs

C2L will pay for summer retainers if required to hold the childcare place over the summer holiday period. You must ensure any summer retainer claimed meets the specific summer retainer rules in full.

Administration funding

This read only page will automatically calculate the 5% administration funding your claim is eligible for based on your earlier funding claim answers.

Total funding claim

This read only page will show you your total C2L claim in academic year 2025 to 2026. This page also gives you the option to return to previous screens to amend your answers.

16 to 19 Bursary for defined vulnerable bursary groups (VB) – autumn 2025 claim form

This read only page shows information about VB funding and completion of the form. Your claim will be reviewed and used to assess payment of VB funding.

The 16 to 19 Bursary Fund guide for academic year 2025 to 2026 (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-bursary-fund-guidance) explains VB in full.

Before you start

Before you start the submission process, please ensure that you have:
- total number of students you are claiming for including any zero bursary students
- vulnerable group category – in care
- vulnerable group category – care leavers
- vulnerable group category – in receipt of Income Support (IS) or Universal Credit (UC)
- vulnerable group category – in receipt of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Personal Independence Payments (PIP) plus Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or UC
- the authority to make the claim on behalf of your organisation
The amount of funding you request must be the amount you have assessed is required for the full academic year.

Students – ‘zero’ students

If a student in a defined vulnerable group either does not need financial help or you already have enough funds to fully support them, they are considered a ‘zero bursary’ student. You still need to include these students in your funding claim here.

Students – claiming funding

You must have verified students are eligible, have evidence to confirm they meet the definition for at least one of the defined vulnerable groups and have a financial need.

Vulnerable group categories

There are 4 categories:
- in care
- care leavers
- in receipt of IS or UC
- in receipt of DLA or PIP as well as ESA or UC
For each, confirm the number of students and the total amount of funding you are claiming.

You must have:
- verified that students are eligible and that you have evidence to confirm they meet the definition of the defined vulnerable group you are claiming for
- carried out an assessment of each student’s actual need for funding and ensured the actual amount of funding you are claiming is what is required by the students
You must not automatically claim £1,200 per student, only the amount each student needs based on your assessment of their specific costs.

Total students per category

This is a read only page showing the number of students per vulnerable category and gives you the option to return to the data to make amendments.

Total claims per category

This is a read only page showing the amount of funding per vulnerable category and gives you the option to return to the data to make amendments.

Declarations page (applicable to both forms)

Once you have completed all data entries in each form you must agree to the mandatory declarations.

You will not be able to submit your form without completing the mandatory declarations.

Submission summary (applicable to both forms)

The summary page for each form allows you to check your answers before submitting the form. You can change your answers using the ‘Change’ link that appears next to each data entry.

You can also save this summary by selecting ‘Save summary as PDF’ before you submit. Alternatively, you can download it by following these steps:

On the summary page, select ‘File’ and then ‘Print.’ A new window will open.

From the dropdown menu, select ‘Save as PDF.’

Select ‘Save.’

We cannot accept a PDF summary of your answers as proof of submission. You must still submit the form.

You must select ‘Submit’ at the bottom of this page and you will receive a unique reference number for your submission to be processed.

Confirmation (applicable to both forms)

The final page for each form confirms your submission and will provide a unique reference number. It also provides you with a link back to the digital collection portal to either claim the other funding or amend a submission.

We will send you a confirmation email to the email address that you logged into DfE Sign-in with. This will contain a link to download a PDF of your submission, which is valid for 6 months from the date of your submission.

Make a note of your unique reference number as we will not include this information in your confirmation email.

Amending your submissions (applicable to both forms)

You can resubmit your form(s) up until 5pm on Wednesday, 12 November 2025 when this digital portal will close. To amend and resubmit the relevant form before the deadline, you will need to sign back in and resubmit your form.

We cannot grant any extensions to the deadline.

If you make any subsequent submissions for the autumn 2025 window up until Wednesday, 12 November 2025 deadline. We will use the details provided on your most recently submitted form and disregard previous versions.

You will receive a new unique submission reference number for all your amended submission(s).

Enquiries

If you have read this guidance and have any questions, contact us through the customer help portal (https://customerhelpportal.education.gov.uk/) quoting ‘Care to Learn (C2L) and 16 to 19 Bursary (VB) – autumn 2025 digital collection’.

Feedback

We are committed to enhancing our user experience and providing an improved forms’ service to our users. User feedback is invaluable to help us to improve. We welcome your feedback, using our short feedback form (https://digital-forms.education.gov.uk/pHimWsw_Cv/give-feedback-on-digital-forms).