Funding & ILR

ILR and apprenticeship funding software, funding-safe by design

Stop reconciling funding in spreadsheets. Journey computes every figure against versioned DfE and ESFA rule packs, builds and validates your ILR, and keeps an audit-ready evidence pack behind every number.

All features

Funding computed against the right rules

Every funding figure is calculated server-side against versioned DfE / ESFA rule packs, selected by date. You always claim against the correct academic year — never a stale or hand-edited number.

ILR build and validation

Assemble ILR from the live learner record, validate against the funding rules before submission, and keep a complete history of what was submitted and when.

Audit-ready by design

An append-only audit log records who did what and when, and every funding figure carries an evidence pack — so an ESFA funding audit or Ofsted inspection finds a defensible trail, not a spreadsheet.

What's covered

Journey covers the funding and ILR workflow end to end, so the numbers you claim and the evidence behind them never drift apart.

  • Versioned DfE / ESFA apprenticeship funding rule packs
  • Server-side funding band, co-investment and incentive calculations
  • Off-the-job (OTJ) hours evidence feeding funding compliance
  • ILR build, validation and submission history
  • Funding forecasting and period-on-period exports
  • ILR identity, actual end date and break-in-learning handling
  • Append-only audit trail and per-figure evidence pack

Last reviewed: June 2026

Why funding belongs on the same record as delivery

When funding is reconciled in spreadsheets, the figure you claim and the evidence behind it live in different places — and they drift. Journey computes every funding-sensitive figure server-side from the live learner record, so the number on a director's dashboard, the figure in the ILR and the evidence pack behind it all come from one source. The client can request a state transition but never supplies the resulting figure.

Off-the-job hours, key dates and decisions are captured as part of delivery and feed directly into funding compliance, with an append-only audit log recording who did what and when. The result is that a funding audit or Ofsted inspection finds a defensible trail rather than a spreadsheet cell with no working behind it.

2026/27 funding rules readiness

Journey holds the apprenticeship funding rules as packs versioned by academic year, selected by each apprentice's start date through a single source of truth. As of June 2026 it carries the 2024/25 and 2025/26 packs and is built to adopt the 2026/27 pack — now published by the DWP (which took on the apprenticeship funding rules on 1 April 2026) and applying to apprenticeships starting from 1 August 2026 — added alongside the existing years so historic learners keep being calculated correctly.

Journey is independent software built around the published funding rules; it is not government or Ofsted approved and does not guarantee funding or inspection outcomes.

Funding & ILR questions

Does Journey handle ILR submissions?
Yes. Journey builds the ILR from your live learner record, validates it against the current funding rules, and keeps a full submission history so you can see exactly what was returned in each period.
How does Journey keep funding figures correct?
All funding is computed server-side against versioned DfE/ESFA rule packs chosen by date, so figures are always calculated against the correct academic year's rules. Clients can request a transition but never supply the resulting funding figure.
Is Journey ready for an ESFA funding audit?
Yes. Journey keeps an append-only audit log and attaches an evidence pack to funding figures, including off-the-job hours and key dates, giving you a defensible trail for funding assurance and Ofsted inspection.
Does Journey track off-the-job training hours?
Yes. Off-the-job (OTJ) hours are captured against the apprenticeship standard, with shortfall alerts, and feed directly into funding compliance and audit evidence.

Funding-safe and audit-ready by design

Built so your data, your funding and your audit trail hold up

Hard tenant isolation

Every record is scoped to your organisation on each read and write — one provider can never see another's data.

Append-only audit log

Every state change is recorded against the real person who made it, so the history stands up at audit.

Versioned DfE rule packs

Funding is computed server-side against the right year for each start date — 2024/25 and 2025/26, and built to adopt the 2026/27 pack now published by the DWP.

Governed AI

AI is metered per tenant, prompts are scrubbed of learner PII and outputs are validated, falling back gracefully.

ISO 27001 & Cyber Essentials

Built and operated by a UK company to externally-audited information-security standards.

Your data and employers stay yours

No lock-in: export your data whenever you like, and your employer relationships always remain yours.

Journey is independent software and is not DfE or Ofsted approved. It does not guarantee funding or inspection outcomes.