Scooping the largest award this year is Enthuse Charitable Trust. They will use a £50,000 grant to create two ENTHUSE Partnerships in disadvantaged communities across the area supported by the Fund. The Partnerships empower schools and colleges to share best practice and work collaboratively, addressing underachievement in STEM subjects, inspiring excellence in the STEM curriculum and raising aspirations for STEM careers and further study.
Professor Dudley Shallcross, Independent Trustee and Chair at the ENTHUSE Charitable Trust said: “We are delighted to receive further funding from the Walney Extension Community Fund which will make a huge difference to the lives of young people living on the coast in Cumbria and Lancashire. This is the second time the ENTHUSE Charitable Trust has received funding from this cause and shows the importance of continued collaboration with our partners – particularly partners such as this who closely align with one of our key values, sustainability.
ENTHUSE Partnerships improve young people’s attainment and engagement in STEM subjects and develop awareness and understanding of STEM careers, leading to improved outcomes, and we’d like to express our huge gratitude to the Walney Extension Community Fund for their support.”
Also celebrating is STEMFirst who are to receive £37,000 to deliver their Cyber Escape Challenge. The challenge will see students work in teams as Cyber Crime Prevention Officers to unlock evidence boxes and save the internet. The interactive activity has proved to be a success in other locations and this grant will help STEMFirst expand the offer into the area covered by the Walney Extension Skills Fund.
Whilst being immersed in the challenge, students will develop skills linked to cyber safety, encryption, problem solving and cyber-crime sparking ideas of future careers in energy provision, defence, and security.
Helen Heggie, Director of STEMFirst said: “STEMFirst are passionate about Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths and are delighted to have the opportunity to work with Walney are schools to teach our young people how to keep themselves safe in an increasingly connected, digital world. We will highlight how Science and Maths are everywhere and inspire the next generation of Cyber and STEM Professionals.”
Furness Education & Skills Partnership (FESP) have been awarded £21,188 to host the second Furness Children’s Skills Conference and a series of follow up engagement projects focusing on specific STEM career sectors.
Jayne Moorby MBE, Chair of Trustees at FESP said: “We are delighted to have received the funding to hold a second Children’s Skills Conference! The first conference, held during 2023, was a tremendous success and feedback from both children and educational staff was overwhelmingly positive. The conference was attended by approximately 500 children from 14 local schools. The children got really stuck into skills-based activities with a range of local businesses. There was a real buzz of excitement and teachers commented how engaged the children were, working to solve 'real' problems. It is important that children recognise the skills they have and how to develop them so that they become skilled learners and eventually skilled employees/employers. FESP's work is planned to directly align to local strategic priorities and to contribute to a motivated and skilled future workforce for the area. It is never too young to begin the development of skills. We are very grateful to the Skills Fund for this funding which will enable us to inspire more young people.”
The three latest awards form part of the £600,000 Walney Extension Community Fund 25-year annual commitment and is part of a wider community engagement programme across the Lancashire and Cumbria coastlines.
Imran Nawaz, Senior Stakeholder Advisor & Community Benefit Fund Manager at Ørsted, said: “Our yearly skills fund receives many brilliant applications, and shows the hunger to upskill our community. I’m thankful to everyone who applies and look forwarded to seeing the amazing outcomes of these three projects.”
The Fund is being administered by the independent grant-making charity GrantScape. For further information about the Fund, to see details of the projects awarded grants in earlier rounds, please visit www.grantscape.org.uk or call 01908 247630.
