Iaith Athrawon Yfory Incentive Scheme: guidance for students
The Scheme is available to students studying an accredited secondary postgraduate Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programme enabling them to teach through the medium of Welsh or Welsh as a subject, leading to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
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Overview
Iaith Athrawon Yfory Incentive Scheme is a legal Scheme made by the Welsh Ministers. This scheme has been available since 2018 and supports the Cymraeg 2050 Welsh language strategy, the Welsh Government’s ambition to increase the number of Welsh teachers and the target of a million Welsh speakers by 2050.
The legal Scheme makes provision for secondary postgraduate ITE students, studying their accredited ITE programme through the medium of Welsh or training to teach Welsh as a subject to access these incentives.
Students must reference the appropriate scheme linked to the year of study to check eligibility. If you have any questions related to previous years please contact ITEIncentives@gov.wales
2022 to 2023 academic year
The Iaith Athrawon Yfory Incentive Scheme 2022 (2022 WG20-64) (“the Scheme”) was made by the Welsh Ministers in February 2022.
The 2022 Scheme comes into effect on 1 September 2022 for students in Wales who, between 1 September 2022 and 31 August 2023, start an ITE programme leading to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) through the medium of Welsh or training to teach Welsh as a subject.
2021 to 2022 academic year
The Iaith Athrawon Yfory Incentive Scheme 2021 (2021 WG20-64) (“the Scheme”) was made by the Welsh Ministers in January 2021.
The 2021 Scheme comes into effect on 1 September 2021 for students in Wales who, between 1 September 2021 and 31 August 2022, start an ITE programme leading to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) through the medium of Welsh or training to teach Welsh as a subject.
2020 to 2021 academic year
The Iaith Athrawon Yfory Incentive Scheme 2020 (2020 WG20-06) (“the Scheme”) was made by the Welsh Ministers in December 2020.
The 2020 Scheme came into effect on 1 September 2020 for students in Wales who, between 1 September 2020 and 31 August 2021, start an ITE programme leading to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) through the medium of Welsh or training to teach Welsh as a subject. For more information, please read our guidance.
2018 to 2019 academic year
The Iaith Athrawon Yfory Incentive Scheme 2018 (2018 No. 42) (“the Scheme”) was made by the Welsh Ministers in the exercise of their powers on 7 December 2017.
The 2018 scheme must have led to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) between 1 September 2018 and 31 August 2019, and be run by an ITE provider accredited by the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales. For more information, please read our guidance.
Who is eligible for the Iaith Athrawon Yfory Incentive Scheme?
The incentive grants are available to students who complete an eligible accredited secondary postgraduate ITE programme in Wales that enables them to teach through the medium of Welsh or teach Welsh as a subject.
The incentive grants are available for both full-time and part-time programmes.
To be eligible for an incentive grant, a student must:
- have undertaken an eligible programme, which commenced on or after 1 September but prior to 31 August as specified in the legal scheme
- qualify for support under Regulations made under section 22 of the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998 currently in force
- not already be a qualified teacher on commencement of study towards QTS
- not be employed to teach at a school or other institution as a teacher
- not be a participant in training organised under an employment-based teacher training scheme including the Salaried PGCE
- to received instalment one; have successfully completed an eligible programme and obtained QTS in accordance with the School Teachers' Qualifications (Wales) Regulations 2012 which are in force at the time and
- to receive instalment two; have successfully completed induction within three years, following award of QTS, in a maintained Welsh-medium or bilingual secondary school, or have successfully completed induction as a Welsh teacher in any maintained secondary school in Wales, as required under the Education (Induction Arrangements for School Teachers) (Wales) Regulations 2015 and received the first installment.
For an ITE programme to be eligible it must:
- be accredited by the Education Workforce Council’s (EWC’s) Teacher Education Accreditation Board
- lead to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) in Wales
- enable the student to teach in a secondary setting through the medium of Welsh or teach Welsh as a subject
The Welsh Ministers have discretion not to pay an incentive grant to persons who have been accepted onto an eligible programme after the intake target for that programme has been reached. Eligible persons should seek confirmation from their provider that they are not affected by this.
Full information on eligibility and conditions are set out in the Scheme, which should be read alongside this information. Students must reference the appropriate scheme to the academic year of study to check eligibility. More information can be found on our legal scheme page.
Students undertaking eligible ITE programmes prior to 2018 are not covered under this scheme.
Students who are eligible for an incentive grant and leave a postgraduate ITE programme before its completion will not be entitled to any grant.
Incentive grants for eligible students resuming an eligible programme, or starting an eligible programme where entry has been deferred (suspended), will be eligible to claim the two instalments. Students will only remain eligible for the incentive grant if the deferment of their programme is no longer than one academic year.
If you have any questions related to eligibility, you should discuss this with your ITE provider and if not resolved contact ITEIncentives@gov.wales
What grant is available?
2019 academic year onwards/to present
Since September 2019 under these schemes an incentive grant of up to £5,000 is available and will continue be paid in two instalments of £2,500 to eligible students.
No grant will be paid to a person unless they have made an application to the Welsh Ministers, care of the Welsh Government.
2018 to 2019 academic year
Under this scheme an incentive grant of up to £3,000 alongside the training grant funding of £2000 for the Welsh Medium Improvement Scheme, is available to eligible students who undertaking eligible ITE programmes that started between 1 September 2018 and 31 August 2019. This grant will be paid in two instalments £500 and £2,500.
No grant will be paid to a person unless they have made an application to the Welsh Ministers, care of the Welsh Government.
How to claim grant payments
Students will only be able to claim the grants under a legal scheme if they provide the relevant documents to the Welsh Government within the appropriate timescales:
- Registration form by 31st March
- QTS claim form within one year of achieving QTS
- Induction claim form within one year of completing induction
Students are responsible for ensuring that all claim forms are completed appropriately and sent electronically, in a PDF format and a safe and secure manner to Welsh Government via ITEIncentives@gov.wales within the allocated timescales. Email receipts will be provided by Welsh Government. It is the students’ responsibility to ensure safe receipt of emails.
Copies of claims and emails sent to Welsh Government should be retained by students for their records. Confirmation of receipt emails received from the Welsh Government should also be retained. They should be stored securely and be accessible after leaving university and the induction school. If a student has not received confirmation of receipt email form Welsh Government within 10 days, they should assume the email or claim has not been received.
If claim forms and supporting evidence is not received by Welsh Government in full or is received outside the allocated timescales payment will not be made.
The following information sets out the required process and documentation for payments to be made.
Setting up the payment process
ITE Providers should make students aware of their eligibility to claim this incentive and should provide each eligible student with guidance on the process.
Each eligible student is required to submit a Registration form to the Welsh Government by 31 March of the year of study. The student should provide a personal e-mail address on the form and ensure that the form is sent to Welsh Government from the personal e-mail address provided.
The Registration form provides Welsh Government with the information needed to enable prompt payments to be made on receipt of a claim. All claim payments will be paid directly into the account detailed on this form. If this account changes at any point prior to receiving the second payment, please contact the Welsh Government ITEIncentives@gov.wales to amend your details. It is the students’ responsibility to inform the Welsh Government of any changes.
The form should be completed with a personal e-mail address and be submitted electronically in a secure way, from that personal email address to the Welsh Government at ITEIncentives@gov.wales by 31st March in the year of study or payment cannot be made. You will need to familiarise yourself with this guidance and the 'how to' guidance document before submitting the form.
How to claim the first grant payment
The first payment of £2,500 for eligible students can be claimed on completion of an eligible secondary postgraduate ITE programme in Wales leading to QTS (on award of QTS). It is the student’s responsibility to check with their ITE provider to ensure they are eligible to claim this grant.
The Welsh Government require the below documentation for the first payment to be made:
- Submission of a QTS claim form
- Copy of QTS certificate issued by the Education Workforce Council
The above documentation should be submitted electronically in a secure way to the Welsh Government at ITEIncentives@gov.wales within one year of a student successfully obtaining their QTS. Claims received after this timeframe will not be considered. An ITE Providers’ authorised signatory is required to complete a declaration on the QTS claim form. It is the student’s responsibility to obtain this prior to submitting the claim form.
Eligible students should ensure that they have read and understand the legal scheme relevant to the year of study along with any information provided to support the scheme by Welsh Government.
Eligible students should ensure that they have read the privacy notice relevant to the year of study and understand how their personal data will be used and shared.
The first payment cannot be paid unless a student has submitted a registration form prior to the 31st March of the year of study. All documentation must be received within the allocated timescales or payment will not be made.
How to claim the second grant payment
The second payment of £2,500 for eligible students can be claimed on successful completion of induction at a maintained Welsh-medium or bilingual secondary school or teaching Welsh in any maintained secondary setting in Wales.
The second payment cannot be claimed unless the student has claimed the first payment within the allocated timescales.
The Welsh Government required the below documentation for the second payment to be made:
- Submission of an Induction claim form
- Copy of Induction certificate issued by the Education Workforce Council
Head teachers, Deputy Head teachers or Heads of Department of the school where induction took place are required to sign a declaration at the end of the induction claim form to confirm that the eligible student has successfully completed induction in their maintained Welsh-medium or bilingual secondary school or by teaching Welsh in any maintained secondary setting in Wales.
The above documentation should be submitted on behalf of the student by the Head teacher, Deputy Head teacher or Head of Department who signed the declaration, on behalf of the school where induction was undertaken. The form should not be signed or submitted until the induction period has been fully completed.
The forms should be submitted electronically in a secure way to the Welsh Government at ITEIncentives@gov.wales within one year of a student successfully completing their induction period or payment cannot be made. It is the students’ responsibility to ensure this has been done.
When can I expect to receive the grant payments?
Students should receive the grants payment within 10 days of Welsh Government receiving a fully completed claim form and all supporting documentation. If a student has not received confirmation or receipt as stated in the How to claim grant payments section they should resubmit the forms or contact ITEIncentives@gov.wales.
Payment will be made directly to the eligible student’s bank account, as detailed within the registration form completed by the student in March of the year of study. If these details have changed it is the student’s responsibility to notify Welsh Government of this.
A claim will not be paid if the ITE provider or induction school have not provided confirmation of student’s eligibility.
Recovery of grants
The Welsh Ministers have powers to recover grants paid, in whole or in part. They have discretion about whether to exercise those powers and will consider all cases on their merits.
Cases where these powers might be exercised by the Welsh Ministers will be where:-
- the recipient has provided in, or in connection with, his or her application for a grant, information which is false or materially misleading or
- there is firm evidence that the recipient had never intended to complete the programme or, having completed it, to enter teaching
-
the award of QTS and or Induction has been revoked by the EWC.
Data Protection & Freedom of Information
Information which a student submits as part of their claim under the Iaith Athrawon Yfory Incentive scheme, is subject to the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the “FOIA”), the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (the “EIR”) the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018 (the “DPA”).
Students also acknowledge that the Welsh Government is responsible for determining in our absolute discretion whether:
- to disclose any information which we have obtained under or in connection with the Funding to the extent that we are required to disclose such information to a person making a disclosure request under the FOIA or the EIR and/or
- any information is exempt from disclosure under the FOIA or the EIR
- to undertake checks for the purposes of preventing fraud and money laundering, and to verify your identity. These checks are require to process personal data about you to third party fraud prevention agencies
Welsh Government is the data controller for the personal information it receives. Any personal data we collect will be managed in accordance with our privacy notice and our page 'Privacy notice: Welsh Government grants'.
Frequently asked questions
What is the total value of this incentive grant?
Up to £5,000 is available under the Iaith Athrawon Yfory (IAY) Incentive Scheme.
Is the incentive grant taxable?
Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is a non-ministerial department of the UK Government responsible for the collection of taxes. Incentive grants are not normally taxable for full-time students, however, students should seek advice from HMRC on their individual circumstances.
What will be the effect of the incentive grant on other student support?
An incentive grant is not considered part of your income for student finance provisions based on household income. Therefore, they should not be included when working out your taxable unearned income; however, students should seek advice from their student finance provider on their individual circumstances.
What will be the effect of the incentive grant on benefits?
The Department for Work and Pensions is a UK Government department responsible for welfare and pension policy, you should seek advice from them on your individual circumstances.
Will the training grant trigger student loan repayments?
No, not if you are undertaking a full time programme. However, if you are undertaking a part-time programme, your liability will depend on whether you are also earning a salary (through work not related to ITE) that is high enough to trigger student loan repayments.
Loan repayments may be triggered when you have completed your programme gained QTS and are earning a salary as a teacher.
How is the training grant paid?
Providing all the relevant eligibility criteria have been met and documentation provided, payment is made in two instalments directly from the Welsh Government to the claimant’s bank account. The payment is made separately to other incentive payments.
Is the incentive grant pensionable?
No.
Are teachers eligible for the incentive grant if their teaching post whilst completing induction is at an independent school, sixth form college, or Further Education Institution?
No. For the purposes of claiming the training grant, the claimant must have completed induction in a maintained Welsh-medium or bilingual secondary school or by teaching Welsh in any maintained secondary setting in Wales.
I gained Qualified Teacher Status through an employment-based route, am I eligible for the incentive grant?
No. Teachers who gain Qualified Teacher Status through employment-based routes, including the Salaried PGCE, are not eligible to receive the incentive grant.
Further questions?
Students that have a question related to or not covered in this information, please contact ITEIncentives@gov.wales