Digital Xtra grants boost young Scots’ digital skills

Scottish digital skills charity Digital Xtra has awarded nearly £120,000 in grants to 27 schools and community groups, in a funding round that it expects will involve more than 2,000 young people in extracurricular technology activities over the current academic year.

The latest awards mark the organisation's tenth funding cycle. The programme focuses on computing and digital projects for children aged 16 and under across Scotland.

The 27 recipients were selected from 103 applications following an evaluation process that assessed how each project proposed to engage young people in computing and digital technologies. Successful applicants set out hands-on activities in areas such as coding, robotics, games design, data science and cyber security.

Aberdeenshire secured five grants, the highest number for any local authority in this round. Dundee, Stirling and West Lothian each received support for four projects. Clackmannanshire, Fife, Glasgow and North Ayrshire each gained two grants.

Projects must run on an extracurricular basis and operate within Scotland. They must focus on participants aged 16 and under and show how the activity will continue beyond the initial funding period.

Grants in this cycle ranged from £1,930 to £5,000. Applicants had to explain how participants would learn about and innovate with technology, rather than only use it. They also had to describe which digital skills and broader meta-skills such as problem-solving or collaboration young people would gain.

Targeting skills gap

Digital Xtra links its funding model to concerns over Scotland's digital skills gap. It positions extracurricular projects as a way for young people to access computing experiences that sit alongside formal classroom teaching.

Since 2016, the charity has distributed grants worth a total of £1,189,000. It states that 210 extracurricular computing initiatives have received support over that period, reaching nearly 60,000 young people across the country.

The fund has backing from private sector and public sector partners. Current supporters include Baillie Gifford, Skyscanner, Adobe, Cirrus Logic, CGI and the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Government has identified digital skills as a priority for economic growth and public service reform. Ministers have also promoted links between industry and education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes said the government's involvement formed part of that wider focus. "I am proud that the Scottish Government continues to support Digital Xtra in its mission to inspire and equip Scotland's young people with the digital skills they need to thrive in the modern world," said Kate Forbes, Deputy First Minister, Scottish Government.

"By backing innovative, inclusive extracurricular initiatives, we are helping to close the digital skills gap and ensure that every young person has the opportunity to explore and succeed.

"As technology continues to transform every sector, it is vital that our young people are not only users of technology, but creators and innovators. This is an investment in our people and our future economy."

Classroom projects

The funded initiatives cover a range of formats and technologies. Schools and community groups plan to run clubs, competitions and workshops around subjects including robotics, programming and digital creativity.

St Thomas Aquinas RC Secondary School in Glasgow will use its grant to establish an all-girls code club under the name The STEMinists. The school aims to increase uptake of computing science among female students and challenge perceptions that it is boring or a male subject.

Participants in the club will learn coding through platforms and devices such as Sphero BOLT+, Scratch and the BBC micro:bit V2. Learners will also practise logical and algorithmic thinking, testing and debugging. The school plans group activities that foster teamwork and communication.

James Gillespie's High School in Edinburgh will expand its involvement in the VEX Robotics Competition. Pupils will design, build and programme a robot based on the VEX V5 robotics platform.

The project uses both block-based programming and Python. Teams will compete against other schools from across Scotland in a global competition format designed by VEX Robotics.

James Gillespie's High School also intends to involve P6 and P7 pupils from its feeder primary schools. Those sessions will give younger pupils early exposure to robotics and coding before they start secondary school.

Tenth funding cycle

This year's awards mark a milestone as Digital Xtra begins its tenth round of funding since its creation. The organisation links its grant-making to national and sector-level skills strategies that have emerged over the same period.

Kraig Brown, Partnerships and Development Manager at Digital Xtra, said the charity now aims to build on its previous activity. "As we begin our tenth grants cycle, we are extremely proud of what we have achieved and look forward to working with this year's supported initiatives to build on these results," said Brown.

Brown said demand for digital skills continues to grow across multiple sectors. "Since our establishment, there have been several skills plans and strategies put forth to help create opportunities for young people to learn critical digital skills. However, the ever-increasing need for these skills across multiple sectors means demand still unfortunately significantly outweighs supply," said Brown.

He said this context underlined the importance of informal learning channels alongside formal education.

"This ongoing skills deficit means engaging and upskilling young people through both formal and informal learning channels is more crucial than ever. As such, Digital Xtra will continue to advocate for digital skills for young people and drive growth of meaningful grassroots computing activities in communities across Scotland," said Brown.