This list of FAQs has been provided by the DfE for schools who have received notification, from the DfE, that they were invited to express an interest in a subsidy. This FAQ will be updated periodically as we receive new questions from schools. If you have a new question, please check back here in the first instance.
Last updated 14 January 2021
1. Why should we spend money on textbooks?
Textbooks are a fundamental element of teaching for mastery in high-performing jurisdictions: high-quality textbooks can enhance teaching quality and free teachers from spending time on lesson planning, leading to reduced workload in the long-term[1].
Textbooks can support pupils to learn independently and encourage them to explore for themselves analysing various solutions until they solve the problem, while ensuring a consistent approach for the whole school. They provide a structured and high-quality resource to support teaching for mastery.
If you are unsure whether to make a textbooks purchase, then please get in touch with your local Maths Hub. If you are in a Work Group for this academic year, then your Mastery Specialist will also be able to support you in using the textbooks to best effect.
Information is also available from the NCETM website, and directly from the textbooks publishers themselves, Power Maths and Maths – No Problem!.
2. What expectations are there for schools making purchases?
Before expressing an interest in funds, you should carefully consider how you will embed the use of textbooks into everyday maths teaching at your school. There is an expectation that textbooks purchased through the scheme will be well-used, and if your school is not able to commit to this then we would recommend declining the funding so it can be released to other schools.
To support schools to fully embed textbooks into teaching, our expectation is that schools making purchases through this scheme will engage with ongoing Maths Hubs support to embed and sustain teaching for mastery.
3. What textbooks and other products can be bought using the subsidy?
There are two DfE-approved textbook schemes: Maths - No Problem! by Maths No Problem, and Power Maths by Pearson.
Approved textbooks schemes consist of a range of textbooks, workbooks and teacher guides, as well as certain linked online materials. A detailed list of exactly which products can be claimed for is available in Annex 1 below. Schools will be able to decide on which materials to buy from this list, and in what volumes, subject to a small number of restrictions listed in this guidance.
The match-funding scheme has been designed to broadly reflect the cost of purchasing into an entire scheme of textbooks, workbooks and teacher guides. We strongly recommend that schools buy into full sets of textbooks, workbooks and teacher guides to see the most benefit, and suppliers often offer more generous discounts for schools opting to do this.
4. How much might we be eligible to claim?
If your expression of interest is successful, you will be able to claim back 80% of your spend on the recommended textbooks schemes, up to the total claim amount listed in the covering email.As a worked example, School A has a claims cap of £800. It wants to spend the entire subsidy, so plans to purchase £1000 worth of textbooks. Please note that we aim to offer funding to as many schools as possible within available funding, but submission of an EOI is not a guarantee of funding.
The claims cap is based on the number of pupils in your school and is intended to broadly reflect the cost of purchasing into the textbooks scheme for every pupil. If the number of pupils in your school has increased or decreased by more than 25% since January 2020, please contact the DfE at maths.programme@education.gov.uk.
5. Are there any discounts available on textbooks prices?
Yes, DfE has negotiated special discounts with both textbooks suppliers for subsidy eligible schools:
- Power Maths - eligible schools can purchase Power Maths Textbooks for each child from £4.99 with a free Practice Book (RRP £6.99 and £1.99), subject to specific purchase conditions.
- Maths – No Problem! - offering 50% off its textbooks, workbooks, online Teacher's Guides (subscription), and online Academy (subscription), subject to specific purchase conditions.
6. What about the ongoing costs of maintaining a textbooks scheme?
Our match-funding subsidy is intended to help schools manage the high initial cost of buying into a textbooks scheme. It will not cover the ongoing costs of a textbooks scheme, including, for example, replacing pupil workbooks or renewing online subscriptions. The annual costs for textbooks schemes are typically lower than the initial cost of the scheme, however schools should ensure that they understand these costs before purchasing a textbooks scheme. More information is available from the textbooks publishers themselves, Power Maths and Maths – No Problem!.
7. What if my school has already claimed some subsidy before?
If you’ve already claimed some match-funding before, you can still express an interest in the subsidy amount listed in our email. This is because your previous subsidy spend has already been factored in.
Please note that for schools that submitted claims in 2019/20 academic year, the claims cap may be lower than the listed amount. This is because the full claims data has not yet been confirmed for 2019/20.
8. How have you calculated the amount we can express an interest in?
The amount is calculated based on the number of pupils in Year 1 to Year 6 (based on January 2020 school census data). We have set a cap of £20 per pupil, which is intended to broadly reflect the cost of purchasing into a textbooks scheme for all pupils in a school, based on an 80% subsidy.
If you have already claimed a subsidy in the past, we have deducted the amount you’ve claimed from the total. The exception to this is for schools that submitted claims in 2019/20 academic year, where the claims cap may be lower than listed because the full claims data has not yet been confirmed for 2019/20.
9. Why are you switching to a process of expressions of interest?
We have made this change because we want as many schools as possible to benefit from the increased offer of funding. Offering the subsidy to as many schools as possible is particularly important in light of the impact of COVID-19 on schools and disadvantaged pupils.
10. How do we express an interest?
You can do this by completing the expression of interest form by the date listed in the covering email. Please note that we ask for spend estimates, so please do factor in time to look at these.
Don’t worry if you aren’t able to make a purchase or full claim straight away – funded schools will have until 30 June 2021 to submit a full claim.
We aim to offer funding to as many schools as possible within available funding, but submission of an EOI is not a guarantee of funding. It is important that you do not make a purchase that relies on subsidy funding until the outcome of your expression of interest is confirmed.
11. How will you determine which expressions of interest are successful?
Although we aim to offer funding to as many schools as possible you should be aware that the submission of an EOI is not a guarantee of funding.
The opportunity to express an interest in funding has only been offered to the schools with the highest proportion of disadvantaged pupils on the TfM programme, and if further prioritisation is needed our intention is to determine this primarily on a first-come first-served basis. We may also decide to take into account other factors, such as a preference for claims that support full embedding of a scheme throughout the school. Please note that you should therefore not make any purchases that rely on this funding until DfE has confirmed the outcome for your school.
12. What do we do after we’ve expressed an interest in funding?
DfE will provide further information on next steps once applications have been received. You should not make any purchases that rely on this funding until DfE has confirmed the outcome of your expression of interest and the amount of funding you have reserved.
Don’t worry if you aren’t able to make a purchase or full claim straight away – funded schools will have until 30 June 2021 to submit a full claim.Please note that funding is usually paid following submission of invoices, rather than in advance of purchase.
13. What if we don’t want to use the funding?
If you do not want to use the funding, please complete the short expression of interest form to let us know. This way we are clear of your intention and can invite the next eligible school on our list to express an interest. This is important so we can get the available funding out to as many schools who want it as possible.
14. Can we make a new claim for textbook purchases we made in the past (including textbooks purchased for use in 2020/21 academic year)?
The intention of the subsidy is to support schools with the highest proportions of disadvantaged pupils that would like to purchase high quality textbooks schemes. The claim for match-funding should be based on purchases made between 1 September 2020 and 30 June 2021. A full list of eligible products is available in Annex 1 below.
If you purchased approved textbooks in 2019/20 academic year in anticipation that you would be eligible for match funding this year, please get in touch with us for further advice at maths.programme@education.gov.uk.
It may be useful to know that funding is not restricted to those schools making first-time purchases. For example, a school could make a claim to further expand the use of a textbooks scheme.
15. We placed an order for textbooks in the past, but have not been invoiced for the textbooks, can we still make a claim?
The eligibility window applies to the date on which the order was placed (as opposed to invoiced or delivered). Please note though, that you will still be asked to supply an invoice to submit a full claim for funding.
16. Can we use the money to pay for subscriptions (or other ongoing costs)?
Where possible, schools should use funding to make purchases to expand use of textbooks schemes within their school – for example by purchasing textbooks for more classes, or bringing in use of practice books. This is as opposed to renewing specific products they have already been using.
Use of funding to renew subscriptions (or other ongoing costs) should not exceed one academic year’s worth of product, and schools should first ensure that they are not able to expand their existing use of the textbooks scheme further.
17. Can we use funding to switch from one approved textbooks scheme to another?
This is a judgement for schools, however we strongly encourage careful consideration of value for money when planning such a purchase - including if/how existing textbooks schemes can continue to be used or shared with other schools.
18. Can I purchase just the accompanying materials of a textbooks scheme? (e.g. just the online elements or assessment materials)
The purpose of the funding is to support use of textbooks schemes, which are comprehensive sets of materials that can have significant start up costs when establishing throughout a school. Schools should not claim for the online element or assessment materials elements of the scheme alone, expect where they already have textbooks in place and are otherwise unable to expand textbooks use (For example, where a school already has sufficient supply of approved textbooks, work-books and teachers guides for all teachers and pupils).
19. What if publishers contact us to market books?
Publishers may contact you with information about their textbook offers. Schools can choose whether or not to engage with this - it will not impact the outcome of your expression of interest. However, we do recommend that you speak to publishers to obtain a spend estimate to include in the Expression of interest form. Please note that publishers are not able to confirm funding eligibility, amounts or Expression of interest outcomes.
20. What if I need more time to consider a purchase?
If you need more time to consider your purchase please get in touch with us at maths.programme@education.gov.uk. We can consider schools in this position for inclusion in any future expression of interest rounds.
21. What if we miss the deadline for expressing an interest in funding?
If you have all the required information and intended to express an interest, but missed the deadline to do so, please get in touch with us at maths.programme@education.gov.uk. We can consider schools in this position for inclusion in any future expression of interest rounds.
22. When will you let us know if our EOI has been successful?
For Round 2, we expect to get back to schools before 20th January 2021. For Round 3, we expect to get back to schools within two weeks of the EOI round closing. All confirmation of funding will come directly from maths.programme@education.gov.uk, and emails from textbook publishers or other organisations should not be considered confirmation of funding. Please note that whilst we aim to offer funding to as many schools as possible within available funding, the submission of an EOI is not a guarantee of funding. It is important that you do not make a purchase that relies on subsidy funding until the outcome of your expression of interest is confirmed.
If you need to purchase textbooks before we are due to announce the outcome of the EOI process, please get in touch with us at maths.programme@education.gov.uk.
Annex 1: List of products that can be purchased in the subsidy scheme
Schools can claim funding against products from the following schemes:
- Maths - No Problem! - see p6 for a full list of eligible products
- Power Maths by Pearson - see p7 and p8 for a full list of eligible products
Maths — No Problem!
Key Stage 1: Year 1
- Maths — No Problem! 1A: Textbook, Workbook
- Maths — No Problem! 1B: Textbook, Workbook
Key Stage 1: Year 2
- Maths — No Problem! 2A: Textbook, Workbook
- Maths — No Problem! 2B: Textbook, Workbook
Key Stage 2: Year 3
- Maths — No Problem! 3A: Textbook, Workbook
- Maths — No Problem! 3B: Textbook, Workbook
Key Stage 2: Year 4
- Maths — No Problem! 4A: Textbook, Workbook
- Maths — No Problem! 4B: Textbook, Workbook
Key Stage 2: Year 5
- Maths — No Problem! 5A: Textbook, Workbook
- Maths — No Problem! 5B: Textbook, Workbook
Key Stage 2: Year 6
- Maths — No Problem! 6A: Textbook, Workbook
- Maths — No Problem! 6B: Textbook, Workbook
Online Subscription
The online subscription, ‘The Teacher Hub’, offers access to:
- Online Teacher Guide – gives step-by-step teaching support for every lesson, including misconceptions, differentiation and assessment guidance.
- Online Video Academy – provides comprehensive training videos featuring world-class maths teaching experts.
Assessment and Diagnostic support materials
- Assessment papers – Mid-year and end-of-year papers designed to test pupils’ mathematical fluency, reasoning and problem-solving skills.
- Diagnostic papers – The Diagnostic Papers provide a gap analysis and can help you keep Year 6 pupils on-track for SAT exams.
Maths — No Problem! textbooks and workbooks can be bought here. The full programme for schools includes the online subscription, to find out more visit www.mathsnoproblem.com.
Power Maths by Pearson
Key Stage 1: Year 1
- Power Maths 1A: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 1B: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 1C: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
Key Stage 1: Year 2
- Power Maths 2A: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 2B: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 2C: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
Key Stage 2: Year 3
- Power Maths 3A: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 3B: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 3C: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
Key Stage 2: Year 4
- Power Maths 4A: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 4B: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 4C: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
Key Stage 2: Year 5
- Power Maths 5A: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 5B: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 5C: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
Key Stage 2: Year 6
- Power Maths 6A: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 6B: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
- Power Maths 6C: Textbook, Practice Book, Teacher Guide
Online Subscriptions
Pearson’s Power Maths online subscription include starter activities for each lesson, interactive teaching tools (for regular models and images), strengthen and deepen activities to ensure teachers can offer additional support and stretch, and videos to support teacher understanding of the key concepts introduced in each unit.
- Power Maths Key Stage 1 Online Subscription
- Power Maths Annual Online Subscription Lower Key Stage 2
- Power Maths Annual Online Subscription Upper Key Stage 2
Assessment Materials
The following assessment materials are also eligible for the DfE textbook subsidy.
- Power Maths Half termly and End of Year Progress Tests Years 1 and 2
- Power Maths Half termly and End of Year Progress Tests Years 3 and 4
- Power Maths Half termly and End of Year Progress Tests Years 5 and 6
- Power Maths Half termly and End of Year Progress Tests Years 1 to 6
