For County Durham's independent and voluntary social care & health sector employers

Funding Streams

Decha actively seek funding to help its membership easily access learning and development in the sector.

Decha currently manage a number of contracts to help our employer members fund training in their organisation, including:

Training Strategy Implementation Funding (TSI)

Training Strategy Implementation (TSI) funding is provided by the Department of Health for disbursement to social care employers, including people who directly employ their own staff, to support the achievement of the National Minimum Standards in Social Care. Funding is channelled through the alliance.

Funding enables social care and health providers who become members of decha to receive a subsidy for each Common Induction or LDAF Induction, LDAF Foundation or LDQ carried out (to Skills for Care Standards) or for every NVQ unit completed. At the moment, this subsidy is paid at £70 per unit.

As a partner of TSI we would like to make you aware of a change to the criteria for claiming TSI in the new funding year.

It is a condition of claiming TSI in 2009/10 that funding will only be released for those partners who have completed the National Minimum Data Set for Social Care (NMDS-SC) establishment data (organisation questionnaire) and supplied Skills for Care with the unique NMDS-SC reference number. In addition, partners who hold a NMDS-SC reference number as a result of having completed the NMDS-SC questionnaire before 1st April 2009 must fully update their establishment data before funding is released. This can be done via the NMDS-SC Online website.

Submitting via the online system is quick and easy, the updating is immediately recorded, and the system also provides a range of useful individualised workforce reports for your establishment. To carry out this update simply log into your online account and review each section of your establishment data, clicking save at the end of each page. If you have not received or have lost your username and password please contact the Helpdesk on the number below.

If you have not updated your NMDS-SC establishment data since 1st April 2009, please do so before submitting any claims to decha, as they will not be accepted otherwise.

If you need any help with updating your NMDS-SC, please contact decha or the NMDS-SC Helpdesk on 0845 873 0129.

Update your details at www.nmds-sc-online.org.uk

Train to Gain in Adult Social Care

As part of the government initiated scheme to develop the workforce within Social Care (Train to Gain), decha are now offering funded and part funded places for NVQs in Heath and Social Care, which will be provided through Durham Assessment Centre.

There will be capacity for a number of places, with Learning Skills Council (LSC) funding for candidates meeting the correct criteria. Potential candidates who fail to meet the criteria may still apply subject to alternative funding sources being identified.

Relevant paperwork, (registration, eligibility criteria, assessment agreements etc) will also be completed at induction and all relevant information regarding the completion of units and the options available will be provided.