Definitions

Q: Please define "company"

A: ESF can only support SMEs. Applicants should refer to the "On Your Marks" ESF Prospectus for more details.

Q: Please define "SME"

A: Guidance as to the definition of an SME can be found in the Prospectus.

Q: If I were a sole-trader, employing sub-contractors, would they count towards the SME headcount?

A: No. They would be sole traders or companies in their own right. They do not count as employees of the beneficiary company and therefore would not count as numbers towards the SME definition.

Q: Please define the target groups

A: Target groups are described in the specifications.

Q: Please define the timescales

A: Timescales are described in the specifications.

Q: What is the definition of a foreign national?

A: Learners must be from an EU member state, evidenced by their passport rather than from where they originate. Individuals must be "available for work", evidenced by the possession of a valid National Insurance number.

Learners from a non-EU country may also be eligible providing that they are legally resident and are able to take paid employment, evidenced by the possession of a valid National Insurance number.

Learners in the above categories can participate in ESF-funded activity irrespective of the number of years they have been legally resident in the UK.

Q: What is the definition of unemployed, does it include people who work under 16 hours per week?

A: For ESF purposes unemployment is a period where a person is not in paid employment (subject to certain exceptions). Registration with the Employment Service is not needed as evidence of unemployment. However, it is the contract manager’s responsibility to make sure that the contractor accurately records the length of time all beneficiaries were unemployed before they started on an ESF project.

 

The following are considered as periods of unemployment. Time spent:

  • on Invalidity Benefit;

  • on Sickness Benefit;

  • on Severe Disablement Allowance; or

  • in custody.

The following conditions do not affect qualifying periods of unemployment for beneficiaries:

  • periods of unpaid work;

  • casual or temporary work of not more than four weeks;

  • part-time work of less than 16 hours a week in total, provided that the skills needed for the work will not lead to greater involvement in the labour market; or

  • time spent on an earlier ESF project where the current project will develop the previous one. Where you cannot clearly show this, the beneficiaries will need to serve the qualifying period again Beneficiaries may only continue to work on the current project if you agree

The following do not count as periods of unemployment:

  • time spent on work-related Government programmes such as New Deal where people are considered to form part of the workforce;

  • days for which Statutory Sick Pay or Statutory Maternity Pay have been claimed;

  • time spent in compulsory education; and

  • time spent on training or education courses that last longer than four weeks.

Q: Please define NEET and “At risk of becoming NEET” with regards to age.

A: NEET: 16-19 years

At risk of becoming NEET may be 14 or 15 years but must be designated as such (eg by Connexions).