NPQ's

The information below is from the DfE website for the most up to date information visit the gov.uk website.

Scholarship funding for autumn 2025

Scholarship funding is available for teachers and leaders in publicly funded schools (including maintained nursery schools) and 16 to 19 educational settings in England for the following NPQs:

• special educational needs coordinators (SENCOs)
• headship

Funding for these courses is also available to:

• schools eligible for targeted regional improvement for standards and excellence (RISE) intervention
• hospital schools
• young offender institutions
• local authority virtual school headteachers, staff in a defined deputy headteacher role and staff in direct teaching roles
• other local authority staff in direct teaching roles – for example, local authority supply or peripatetic teachers

Scholarship funding is also available for the following NPQs based on disadvantage criteria:

• leading teaching
• leading behaviour and culture
• leading literacy
• leading primary mathematics
• senior leadership
• executive leadership
• early years leadership
• leading teacher development

For these NPQs, scholarship funding to cover the full NPQ course cost will be available to teachers and leaders from eligible schools and 16 to 19 settings that have high levels of disadvantage. 

For the NPQ in early years leadership, highly disadvantaged early years settings and maintained nursery schools will also be eligible. 

For the NPQ in leading teacher development, scholarship funding is also available if you’re taking on the role of lead mentor for an initial teacher training (ITT) provider accredited to deliver ITT from September 2024.

To be eligible, your school or setting must be on one of the disadvantage eligibility lists.

Eligibility lists

Details of eligibility lists based on disadvantage are set out as follows.

Schools

The top 50% of publicly funded schools that have the highest proportion of students attracting pupil premium. This does not include maintained nursery schools.

Further education

The top 50% of 16 to 19 settings where the highest proportion of funded students attracting a disadvantage uplift. This is based on a combination of disadvantage block 1 and block 2 funding.

Early years

The top 50% of early years settings where the highest proportion of children get early years pupil premium or disadvantaged 2-year-old entitlement funding.

This includes private, voluntary, independent (PVI) settings, Ofsted-registered early years childminders and maintained nursery schools.

These settings are eligible for the early years leadership NPQ only.

Maintained nursery schools are also eligible for headship and SENCO NPQs regardless of disadvantage.

Schools eligible for targeted RISE intervention

This includes schools that:

• were previously scheduled for structural intervention after 1 January 2025 but have since had this intervention revoked
• are stuck schools – a stuck school is defined as a school that was graded Requires Improvement or equivalent at its most recent Ofsted inspection, and was also graded below Good at its previous inspection and is still within the same structure

The eligible settings are fixed for the autumn 2025 recruitment period.

Early headship coaching offer

For the early headship coaching offer, you can get funding to cover the course fees if you’re both:

• in your first 5 years of headship in England in a state-funded school or 16 to 19 organisation
• currently doing, or have completed, the NPQ for headship

Funding restrictions 

You can only receive scholarship funding for each NPQ once.

If you receive scholarship funding but then withdraw from or fail a course, you cannot get scholarship funding for the same NPQ again.

Being eligible for an NPQ scholarship does not guarantee that:

• the course is suitable for you
• a funded course place will be available

NPQ providers determine suitability through their application processes.

The total amount of scholarship funding is limited, so some eligible teachers and leaders may not secure a funded place. Check with your provider before you register to see if a funded place is available.

NPQ providers manage applications for the courses they deliver and may prioritise applications according to the number of funded places they have available. For example, priority will be given to applications for the NPQ for SENCOs to those needing to take the NPQ as a mandatory qualification for their role as a SENCO.

If a funded place is not available

If funded places are not available with your chosen NPQ provider, you can:

• contact another provider to enquire about funded places
• join your provider’s waiting list
• self-fund your course place

Find out more about providers and the NPQ courses they offer.

Legacy NPQs 

If you received scholarship funding for a legacy NPQ before November 2021 and withdrew from the programme, you’re still eligible for scholarship funding for the current NPQs.

NPQ providers

Providers are:

• chosen by the Department for Education (DfE) in a fair and open procurement process
• subject to quality assurance through Ofsted inspection
• not the same for every NPQ

The individual NPQ course pages list the providers for each NPQ.

All NPQs are underpinned by a framework that sets out what you should know and be able to do after completing an NPQ.

NPQ training providers use these frameworks to design their courses.

The Aquinas Trust are the regional delivery partner for Church of England NPQ's.

Contact

Jenny Dixon or Philippa Kings, you can reach us at aquinasnpqs@aquinastrust.org

The Aquinas Trust

Aquinas is a Multi-academy Trust comprised of 11 academies (9 primary and 2 secondary) across Bromley and East Sussex. Whilst we are one Trust with one mission to deliver Life - Transforming - Learning to all in our care, each academy maintains its own unique characteristics and individual identity. Teacher development is both a priority and a strength for us, from ITT to Executive leadership, teachers are supported and encouraged at every stage of their journey

Why choose the Church of England NPQ's

We are committed to ethical leadership and psychological safety within our leadership teams, which we feel is promoted through CEFEL's approach to NPQ delivery and planning of content. As a Trust we are committed to holistic development of children and young people, which is supported by CEFEL's vision for education.