Office for Students

Recurrent funding

Allocations and documentation archive

Funding allocations and other documents for previous academic years are available below.

For the academic year 2024-25, the overall non-capital grant we distributed was £1,426 million. Of this, we distributed £1,402 million to providers through our recurrent funding streams.

Recurrent funding allocations are made to providers that are in the 'approved (fee cap)' category of the OfS Register. Initial 2024-25 allocations of funding for 344 providers that had registered in that category were released on 26 July 2024.

For details of the capital funding distributed for 2024-25, please see our capital funding pages.

Key documents

These documents describe how we calculated our funding for 2024-25.

Our funding streams

Of the £1,402 million of recurrent funding distributed for 2024-25, we distributed:

  • £1,043 million in funding for high-cost courses, provided to help support the extra costs associated with teaching particular subjects.
  • £301 million in funding for student access and success, provided to support student access and success for particular student groups. This included Uni Connect (£20 million for 2024-25).
  • £58 million in funding for specialist providers, provided to support certain specialist institutions with world-leading teaching. For further details, please see our funding for specialist providers pages.

Other documents

Summary data

These documents summarise our allocations across the sector. The tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between. 

For the academic year 2023-24, the overall non-capital grant we distributed is £1,439 million. Of this, we distributed £1,412 million to providers through our recurrent funding streams.

Recurrent funding allocations were made to providers that are in the 'approved (fee cap)' category of the OfS Register. Initial 2023-24 allocations of funding for 342 providers that had registered in that category were released on 6 July 2023. Updated 2023-24 allocations of funding for 344 providers that had registered in that category were released on 11 July 2024. Final 2023-24 allocations of funding for 344 providers that had registered in that category were released on 26 July 2024.

For details of the capital funding distributed for 2023-24, please see our capital funding pages.

Key documents

These documents describe how we calculated our funding for 2023-24.

Our funding streams

Of the £1,412 million of recurrent funding distributed for 2023-24, we distributed:

  • £1,038 million in funding for high-cost courses, provided to help support the extra costs associated with teaching particular subjects.
  • £316 million in funding for student access and success, provided to support student access and success for particular student groups. This included Uni Connect (£30 million for 2023-24).
  • £58 million in funding for specialist providers, provided to support certain specialist institutions with world-leading teaching. For further details, please see our funding for specialist providers pages.

Other documents

Summary data

These documents summarise our allocations across the sector. The tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between.

For the academic year 2022-23, the overall non-capital grant we distributed was £1,373 million. Of this, we distributed £1,347 million to providers through our recurrent funding streams.

Initial 2022-23 allocations of funding for 345 providers that had registered in that category were released on 15 July 2022.

Our approach to allocating capital funding has changed for 2022-23. Further details can be found on our capital funding pages.

Key documents

These documents describe how we calculated our funding for 2022-23.

Our funding streams

Of the £1,347 million of recurrent funding distributed for 2022-23, we distributed:

  • £974 million in funding for high-cost courses, provided to help support the extra costs associated with teaching particular subjects.
  • £310 million in funding for student access and success, provided to support student access and success for particular student groups. This included Uni Connect (£30 million for 2022-23).
  • £58 million in funding for specialist providers, provided to support certain specialist institutions with world-leading teaching. Allocations for this funding stream were announced in December 2022. For further details, please see our funding for specialist providers pages.

Other documents

Summary data

These documents summarise our allocations across the sector. The tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between.

For the academic year 2021-22, the overall grant we distributed was £1,437 million.

Of this, we distributed £1,266 million to providers through our recurrent funding streams.

Recurrent funding allocations are made to providers that are in the 'approved (fee cap)' category of the OfS Register.

Our initial allocations of funding for 2021-22 were released on 29 July 2021 and included 335 providers that had registered in that category.

Key documents

These documents describe how we calculated our funding for 2021-22.

Our funding streams

The majority of our funding for 2021-22 (£1,266 million) was allocated as recurrent teaching grant:

  • Funding for high-cost courses (£900 million for 2021-22) was provided to help support the extra costs associated with teaching particular subjects.
  • Funding for student access and success (£313 million for 2021-22) was provided to support student access and success for particular student groups. This includes Uni Connect (£40 million for 2021-22).
  • Funding for specialist providers (£53 million for 2021-22) was provided to support certain specialist institutions with world-leading teaching.

Other documents

Summary data

These documents summarise our allocations across the sector. The tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between. 

For the academic year 2020-21 the overall grant we distributed was £1,426 million.

Of this we distributed £1,255 million to providers through our recurrent funding streams.

Recurrent funding allocations are made to providers that are in the 'approved (fee cap)' category of the OfS Register.

Our initial allocations of funding for 2020-21 were released on 12 May 2020 and included over 320 providers that had registered in that category by 14 April 2020.

We also set aside budget provision to make further allocations to providers which register in the same category after 14 April and before the end of the 2020-21 academic year (31 July 2021).

We released these funds throughout the year. We will not reduce the allocations announced on 12 May to extend funding to providers that join the OfS Register later.

Key documents

These documents describe how we calculated our funding for 2020‑21.

Our funding streams

The majority of our funding for 2020-21 (£1,255 million) was allocated as recurrent teaching grant:

  • Funding for high-cost courses (£895 million for 2020-21) was provided to help support the extra costs associated with teaching particular subjects.
  • Funding for student access and success (£316 million for 2020-21) was provided to support student access and success for particular student groups. This includes Uni Connect (£60 million for 2020-21).
  • Funding for specialist providers (£43 million for 2020-21) was provided to support certain specialist institutions with world-leading teaching.

Further information on our funding streams and how they are allocated can be found in our Guide to funding 2020-21.

Other documents

  • Covering letter (May 2020)
    This is a template for the 2020-21 covering letter sent to providers in May 2020.
  • 2020-21 Recurrent grant technical guidance
    This document provides technical guidance to explain how the figures in the 2020-21 grant tables are derived. It also includes information on how to make data amendments and guidance on appeals.

Summary data

These documents summarise our allocations across the sector, as well as the student numbers that they are based on.

  • 2020-21 Sector tables (May 2020)
    These tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between. They show the allocations as they were announced in May 2020.
  • 2020-21 Sector tables (July 2020)
    These tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between. They show updated allocations as announced in July 2020.
  • 2020-21 Sector tables (October 2020)
    These tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between. They show updated allocations as announced in October 2020.

Following a strategic guidance letter in January 2020 from the Secretary of State for Education, which announced a reduction to recurrent teaching grant for the financial year, we secured savings of £26 million from funds not yet committed and have updated the 2019-20 budgets accordingly.

For full details, please see Funding for academic years 2019-20 and 2020-21: OfS board decisions and outcomes of consultation.

For the academic year 2019-20 the overall grant we distributed was £1,449 million.

Of this we distributed £1,309 million to providers through our recurrent teaching funding streams.

Recurrent funding allocations are made to providers that are in the 'approved (fee cap)' category of the OfS register.

Our initial allocations of funding for 2019-20 were released on 9 May 2019 and included 304 providers that had registered in that category by 15 April 2019.

We set aside £14 million to make further allocations to providers which registered in the same category after 15 April and before the end of the 2019-20 academic year (31 July 2020).

We released these funds throughout the year. We will not reduce the allocations announced on 9 May to extend funding to providers that join the OfS register later.

Key documents

These documents describe how we calculated our funding for 2019‑20.

Our funding streams

The majority of our funding for 2019-20 (£1,309 million) is allocated as recurrent teaching grant:

  • High-cost subject funding (£713 million for 2019-20) is provided to help support the extra costs associated with teaching particular subjects.
  • Targeted allocations (£536 million total for 2019-20) are provided to support important or vulnerable features of higher education in accordance with key policy initiatives.
  • National Collaborative Outreach Programme (£60 million for 2019‑20), known as Uni Connect from January 2020. Further information on our funding streams and how they are allocated can be found in the ‘Guide to funding 2019-20’.

Other documents

  • Covering letter (May 2019)
    This is a template for the 2019-20 covering letter sent to providers in May 2019.
  • 2019-20 Recurrent grant technical guidance
    This document provides technical guidance to explain how the figures in the 2019-20 grant tables are derived. It also includes information on how to make data amendments and guidance on appeals.

Summary data

These documents summarise our allocations across the sector, as well as the student numbers that they are based on.

  • 2019-20 Sector tables (May 2019)
    These tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between. They show the allocations as they were announced in May 2019.
  • 2019-20 Sector tables (July 2019)
    These tables show the updated allocations announced in July 2019, which includes allocations for some providers registered after the May announcement.
  • 2019-20 Sector tables (October 2019)
    These tables show the updated allocations announced in October 2019, which includes allocations for some providers registered after the July announcement. 
  • 2019-20 Sector tables (March 2020)
    These tables show the updated allocations announced in March 2020, which includes allocations for some providers registered after the October announcement.
  • 2019-20 Sector tables (July 2020)
    These tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between. They show updated allocations as announced in July 2020.
  • 2019-20 Sector tables (October 2020)
    These tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between. They show updated allocations as announced in October 2020.

HESES18 and HEIFES18 data was released as an official statistic and can be accessed from our data collection pages. 

For the academic year 2018-19, we allocated funding to 315 higher education providers.

In May 2018 we announced these funding allocations, which total £1,538 million.

We have calculated teaching and capital funding using:

Key documents

These documents describe how we have calculated our funding for 2018-19.

Our funding streams

The majority of our funding for 2018-19 (£1,290 million) was allocated as recurrent teaching grant.

Our ‘Guide to funding’ provides further detail on these funding streams.

Recurrent grant: high-cost subject funding

This funding totals £681 million for 2018-19 and is provided to help support the extra costs associated with teaching particular subjects.

Some subjects need particular facilities or equipment to teach and so are more expensive than other subjects which are classroom based.

Recurrent grant: targeted allocations

These total £549 million for 2018-19. Our targeted allocations are provided to support important or vulnerable features of higher education, and reflect policy areas highlighted by the government as important.

For example, we have distributed £72 million to providers to support successful outcomes for part-time undergraduates.

A full list of our targeted allocations is in our ‘Guide to funding’.

Other funding streams

  • National Collaborative Outreach Programme
    The recurrent teaching grant total also includes £60 million for the National Collaborative Outreach Programme.
  • National facilities and regulatory initiatives
    For 2018-19, this totals £51 million. This is used to secure change or fund activities that can’t be addressed through our funding to providers
  • Knowledge exchange funding
    For 2018-19, this totals £47 million. This funding comes from our teaching grant budget, but it is administered by Research England according to a method agreed with us.
    The funds support the contribution higher education makes to the economy and society.
  • Capital funding for teaching
    For 2018-19, this totals £150 million. Further information on capital funding can be found in our capital funding pages.

Other documents

Summary data

These documents summarise our allocations across the sector, as well as the student numbers that they are based on.

Sector tables

These tables combine the allocations to all our funded providers. They show the total for each funding stream, as well as the total student numbers that the stream is shared between. There are two versions of these tables, one released in May 2018 and an updated table release in October 2018.

Summary table

  • HESES17 and HEIFES17 summary table (updated October 2018)
    This is a summary of the information provided to us in the HESES17 and HEIFES17 surveys. The 2017-18 student numbers returned in this survey were used to calculate funding for 2018-19. This data was updated in October 2018 to reflect changes that we have agreed to accept for a small number of providers. 

Prior to 2018-19, funding was provided by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). For further information on how this funding was allocated, you can consult the annual allocations pages on the HEFCE website.

Capital funding

See the process for the distribution of capital grant funding

Related publications

Last updated 25 July 2025
25 July 2025
This page now contains an archive of previous years' recurrent funding allocations and documentation. Documentation and guidance for 2025-26 is available from the 'funding allocations' webpage.
10 April 2025
Updated 2024-25 technical guidance and sector tables published for April 2025.
27 February 2025
Added information on algorithmic transparency for funding allocations.
25 October 2024
Updated 2024-25 sector tables published for October 2024.
26 April 2024
Sector tables April 2024: We have replaced the degree apprenticeships funding with a link to their separately published funding allocations.
11 April 2024
Updated Annex A for 2023-24 figures
07 July 2023
2023-24 documentation and sector tables published
09 March 2023
2022-23 sector tables and technical guidance document updated
20 January 2023
Corrected the omission of one provider from the 2021-22 Sector tables December update.
08 December 2022
Updated 2022-23 and 2021-22 Sector tables
15 July 2022
2022-23 documentation and sector tables published
25 February 2022
2020-21 Sector tables (February 2022) updated
30 July 2021
Updated for 2021-22
11 February 2021
2020-21 Sector tables (October 2020) updated
23 October 2020
Updated 2019-20 and 2020-21 sector tables following updated allocations
29 July 2020
Updated 2019-20 and 2020-21 sector tables following updated allocations
13 May 2020
Updated for 2020-21
27 March 2020
2019-20 Sector tables (March 2020) published
Help us improve your experience

Describe your experience of using this website

Improve experience feedback
* *

Thank you for your feedback