Digital Xtra Fund Header - Empowering Scotland's Future Tech Innovators

What is Digital Xtra?

Created in 2016, our goal is for every young person in Scotland to have access to innovative and digitally creative activities regardless of their gender, background, or where they live. The aims of Digital Xtra are to:

Inspire

Inspire the next generation to understand and innovate with technology, not simply use it, by supporting the provision of high-quality extracurricular digital skills activities and help young people understand the breadth of career opportunities these skills can provide

Enable

Enable exciting digital skills activities for young people across Scotland through our grant awards programme, with a particular focus on groups underrepresented in the digital technologies sector or areas often excluded through lack of resources or local facilities

Engage

Engage our Industry Partners in supported activities, giving industry experts and young people the opportunity to connect in informal and creative settings. Our Partners also participate in the grant awards process by contributing expertise to the Application Evaluation Panel

Find out how Digital Xtra is supporting organisations to help inspire
the next generation of developers, designers, and digital technologists in Scotland:

How to get involved in Digital Xtra?

Whether you are a business or organisation seeking to support digital skills for young people, have a project that needs funding, or simply seeking your nearest coding club – we can help:

Become a Partner

Is your organisation passionate about helping young people learn the skills they need to succeed in a digital world? Partner with Digital Xtra to support exciting digital skills activities for young people across Scotland

Apply for Funding

Do you have an amazing project that will engage and inspire young people in computing science and digital technologies, but need some financial support?

Applications for the 2025/26 academic year
will open in early 2025.

Find an Activity

Are you looking to get involved in digital tech? Search our Directory of Resources to find what inspiring activities and initiatives are taking place across Scotland. Is your activity or initiative missing from our list? Let us know!

Learn about Digital Xtra’s Partners and Supporters who provide the financial support, 
in-kind support, and expertise to help us engage thousands of young people across Scotland:

Working together to boost digital skills across Scotland

The Scottish digital technologies sector is expanding, resulting in an increasing demand for employees with high level digital technology skills. However, there is now clear evidence that the talent pipeline is Scotland must expand in order to meet this demand. Young people are avid consumers of technology but it’s important we stimulate their interest in computing science and technology from an early age through fun and engaging activities as well as provide context to these skills. It is imperative that young people consider computing science and digital technologies as a positive and exciting career path, otherwise the resulting skills gap will have long-term consequences on their future as well as that of the Scottish economy. 

Backed by businesses, organisations and individuals with a common will to help young people succeed in a digital world, Digital Xtra is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) that supports the delivery of extracurricular computing and digital tech activities across Scotland to boost interest in computing and technology among young people aged 16 years and under. In particular, the charity seeks to dispel negative perceptions about computing science and promote digital technologies as an attractive career path while also improving participation of girls and other underrepresented groups in digital tech and supporting activities in areas of high deprivation and rural isolation.

Digital Xtra would like to thank it’s Partners without whom the grants programme would not be possible:

  • Baillie Gifford logo
  • Blackadders LLP logo
  • CGI logo
  • Heriot Watt University logo
  • ScotlandIS logo

To date, Digital Xtra has distributed £1,071,000 in support of 183 inspiring digital skills initiatives across Scotland

Read about the latest amazing computing and digital technologies initiatives we’ve helped:

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