Shirley-Anne Somerville Archives

18 Oct 2017

BT signs up to support digital skills charity

Digital skills charity, Digital Xtra Fund, has partnered with BT to help make computing science activities available to young people in Scotland and is calling on other businesses to follow suit.

Digital Xtra Fund supports activities which inspire young people to understand and create with digital technologies, not just how to use them. It aims to foster the next generation of digital makers, teach young people the skills they will need to succeed in the workplace of the future, and help drive forward Scotland’s economy.

Activities supported by Digital Xtra Fund are primarily aimed at young people not previously engaged in digital technologies, especially girls and young women, or areas where there is currently a lack of resources or understanding around digital technologies.

Digital Xtra Fund was launched in May 2016 by the Scottish Government, in partnership with public and private sector bodies including Skills Development Scotland, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and ScotlandIS, to act as a pivot point between the private and public sector in order to more efficiently support digital skills activities for young people and help communicate career pathways. It was spun out as an independent charity in March 2017.

Minister for Further and Higher Education Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “Digital Xtra Fund is a new and innovative approach bringing the public and private sector together in a coordinated way to support digital skills for young people.

“It is critical that industry also gets behind this joined up approach and supports Digital Xtra Fund to ensure every young person in Scotland has the opportunity to understand and create with digital technologies, as well as appreciate the future opportunities these skills will provide. Only through partnership and collaboration can we effectively increase the quantity, and importantly the quality, of digitally creative experiences for all young people.”

Brendan Dick, director of BT Scotland, said: “We recognise the importance of a joined-up approach within industry to address the digital skills gap and the role Digital Xtra Fund plays in coordinating this. It needs the support and financial backing of industry in order for it to have maximum impact and reach as many young people as possible. This is a real opportunity for Scotland’s companies to come together and be part of the solution to the digital skills gap.”

Support of companies like BT will ensure the Fund’s sustainability and gives every young person, regardless of their background or location, the chance to take part in extracurricular digital activities. Other companies backing Digital Xtra Fund include Be Positive and Edge Testing.

Kraig Brown, Partnerships & Development Manager for Digital Xtra Fund, added: “Speaking with companies across various sectors, I often hear, ‘Yes, digital skills are hugely important in our sector, but what can we do with limited time and resources’. This unfortunately leads to peaks and troughs in support and varying levels of activity provision across the country.

“Digital Xtra Fund is a coordinated approach that easily enables any business to be part of an overarching strategy to increase digital skills in young people, ensuring a larger impact and legacy. I encourage any business that understands the importance of digital skills for young people and the value of a coordinated approach to partner with the Fund.”

In 2016, Digital Xtra Fund supported 22 projects across Scotland, engaging 15,000 young people. Applications for the most recent funding round, the first as an independent charity, closed 1 September. Grants of up to £5000 will be awarded to projects which teach concepts like computational thinking, coding, digital creativity, and data science in a fun and inspiring environment. Projects will be chosen by a panel of experts made up of key players in Scotland’s tech industry with successful awardees for 2017/18 being announced shortly.

Digital Xtra Fund is now establishing a 2018/19 funding round and is looking partner with likeminded individuals, businesses, and organisations who are also keen to increase the availability of extracurricular computing activities for young people across Scotland.

29 Mar 2017

Minister unveils Digital Xtra Fund as Scotland’s first dedicated digital skills charity for young people

The Digital Xtra Fund has become Scotland’s first charity dedicated to supporting a full range of digital skills initiatives for young people aged 16 and under after receiving official charitable status from Scottish charity regulator, OSCR.

Digital Xtra is now calling on Scotland’s tech industry to contribute donations, sponsorships and offers of in kind support to ensure that extracurricular digital initiatives are available to young people wherever they live and whatever their background.

Funding has also been provided by the Digital Scotland Business Excellence Partnership, whose partners include Scottish Government, Skills Development Scotland, Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Scottish Funding Council, Education Scotland, ScotlandIS, and industry representatives.

The announcement was made by Shirley-Anne Somerville MSP, Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science, speaking in Glasgow at Tackling the Technology Gender Gap Together 2017.

A key objective of the new charity is to promote gender balance by encouraging more girls to engage in digital and consider STEM subjects while in school.

Ms Somerville said: “The Digital Xtra Fund is an example of the Scottish Government’s determination to close the digital skills gap faced by all sectors across the economy.

“Investment in the digital skills of our young people is crucial to Scotland’s future which is why we are extremely proud to fund Digital Xtra which has been a key partnership project from the Digital Technologies Skills Investment Plan.

“We must provide opportunities for our children and young people to develop their digital skills from a young age and Digital Xtra is doing just that, offering thousands of young people opportunities to strengthen their skills in this area through engagement in a range of innovative projects.”

The new Scottish Government Digital Strategy sets out its ambition to create conditions in which Scotland can increase the number of people employed in digital technology roles to 150,000 by 2021.

Increasing digital participation and preparing your people for the digital future by improving digital skills levels will be an integral component of this strategy. Career opportunities are significant, with an estimated 12,800 job opportunities available in Scotland annually.

The Digital Xtra Fund is appealing for support from companies that wish to support young people and want to see a coordinated, sustainable and inclusive approach, gaining maximum value from coalescing funds.

BT Scotland and Be Positive are two of the first industry supporters to have made a contribution to the Digital Xtra Fund.

Brendan Dick, Director of BT Scotland, said: “Digital skills are increasingly seen as a prerequisite, as important to the prospects of young people today as reading and writing. It’s essential our young people are equipped with the skills they need for the world of work, and the public, private and voluntary sectors all have a contribution to make in giving them the best possible chances.”

He continued: “Supporting Digital Xtra will help us build a culture of tech literacy, as BT works to reach five million young people across the UK by 2020. We hope many Scottish businesses will join us in backing the Digital Xtra Fund.”

Vicky Di Ciacca, Director at Be Positive, said: “It is vitally important that all young people are equipped to take on the challenge of our increasingly digital world. We are a small business and expect our future employees to lead the way when it comes to technology and how to harness it. Regardless of an individual’s ambitions and aspirations, digital skills are integral to engaging in the world of work and beyond.”

Digital Xtra will work to build stronger links between young people and Scotland’s tech industry, promote the range of pathways into the tech sector, and broaden the talent pipeline by targeting underrepresented groups.

The Digital Xtra Fund was launched in May 2016, and has to date distributed £400,000 to organisations delivering extracurricular activities, with funding provided by the partners of the Digital Scotland Business Excellence Partnership.

The 22 projects funded so far are expected to reach 15,000 school pupils across every local authority area in Scotland. Funded initiatives include the training of over 140 librarians to deliver Code Clubs, the expansion of Apps for Good across Scotland and initiatives that use the design of lighthouses to introduce ‘little engineers’ to STEM concepts.

Phil Worms, Computing and Schools Project Lead at ScotlandIS, said: “It’s our aim to ensure that young people of all ages and backgrounds throughout Scotland have the opportunity to develop the skills required to thrive in our digital world. We need to inspire our younger generations, especially girls, in technology and digital. The Digital Xtra Fund charity will not only help us achieve this but will also offer tangible support to our education sector and act as a vehicle for industry support. ”

Paul Zealey, Digital Xtra Fund trustee and Skills Planning Lead at SDS, said: “Digital Xtra’s work to date is incredibly impressive, having impacted the lives of thousands of young people across Scotland as they become engaged and inspired by our digital world. We are off to a great start with the funding that Digital Xtra has already received and we hope that this will encourage others to follow suit and show their support for the charity.”

Joyce MacLennan, Head of Finance and Business Services at Highlands and Islands Enterprise, said: “We need to offer opportunities for all of Scotland’s future young workforce to develop digital skills, especially young people in more rural areas who struggle to attend events or access activities. Digital Xtra helps overcome barriers, increase participation and explore opportunities to extend the reach of successful projects.”

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. A Board of trustees has been appointed to set the strategic direction of the charity and evaluate and review the initiatives that will receive funding. This expert panel is made up of representatives from across Scotland’s digital technology industry, including iomart, Fujitsu, Dogfi.sh Mobile, SCVO, ScotlandIS and Skills Development Scotland.

2. The Digital Xtra Fund will announce its plans and application processes in the near future, and it expects to welcome applications from existing initiatives looking to expand their activities, as well as from new and innovative projects that could be rolled out further in future. All applicants must be able to demonstrate potential for scalability and sustainability, as well as showing how they will reach previously underrepresented groups.

3. Digital Xtra Fund is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) registered in Scotland SC047272

30 Jan 2017

From drones to little lighthouses – 10 inspiring projects receive Digital Xtra Fund grants

The Digital Xtra Fund has awarded £150,000 to a series of sustainable digital initiatives aimed at engaging and inspiring Scotland’s next generation of digital makers.

Sums of up to £25,000 were awarded to support 10 extracurricular computing science projects, including one that uses the context of lighthouses to introduce young people to STEM concepts, and another that teaches young people to code using the BBC Micro:bit.

The Digital Xtra Fund aims to make extracurricular digital activities accessible to all young people aged 16 and under, whatever their background and wherever they live in Scotland. In particular, funded projects bring new opportunities to those in harder to reach, rural and disadvantaged areas.

In August 2016 Digital Xtra Fund awarded £250,000 of funding to its first 12 projects. It’s estimated that by March 2017 these projects will have reached approximately 10,500 young people across Scotland, from Orkney to Dumfries and Galloway.

The Scottish Government provided the initial funding to launch Digital Xtra in May 2016 in partnership with organisations including Skills Development Scotland (SDS), Education Scotland, Highlands & Islands Enterprise and ScotlandIS. It is expected that the Fund will expand and go from strength to strength through the financial support of Industry, employers and other funding bodies.

Minister for Further and Higher Education and Science, Shirley-Anne Somerville said:

“STEM subjects can open the door to significant and wide-ranging career opportunities: as well as improving literacy, numeracy and confidence, they can also provide the specialist knowledge and skills necessary to work in the ever-increasing STEM sectors of the economy and continue Scotland’s proud history of excellence and innovation in STEM.

“This government is determined to close the digital skills gap faced by all sectors across the economy which is why we are extremely proud to fund Digital Xtra through the digital skills investment plan. Initiatives like this are absolutely key to inspiring more young people to pursue a career in STEM and I’d like to congratulate all those who have been successful in securing funding for their projects, I look forward to seeing the end results.”

Claire Gillespie, key sector manager for ICT and Digital Skills at SDS, said: “At a time when businesses and organisations across all sectors in Scotland are experiencing increased demand for employees with high level digital technology skills, it’s vital that we show young people that they can be the makers of technology and help them to realise the potential of technology careers.

“Extracurricular activities are a great way of engaging young people and with the help of Digital Xtra Fund they are available more widely than ever before.”

A diverse range of digital projects were selected to receive the funding including existing initiatives looking to expand their activities, as well as innovative new projects and pilots that could be rolled out further in the future.

Among the latest awardees is Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI) and BT for the Little Lighthouse Project, which aims to reach 1,200 school pupils in Primary 1-4 across four local authority areas: Highlands, Western Isles, Perth and Kinross, and Scottish Borders. The initiative uses the context of lighthouses to introduce ‘Little Engineers’ to various STEM concepts including electricity, light, sounds and computing science.

Argyll & Bute Council will establish an extracurricular digital learning hub in Dunoon where a variety of coding clubs and workshops will be held to provide an outreach service for pupils. The hub will act as a dedicated technology space that will provide learners with access to cutting edge digital technology through the use of drones, programmable Lego, robotics and Raspberry Pi computers.

ComputerXplorers will use its funding to deliver workshops to support the roll out of the BBC Micro:bit to S1 pupils in East Lothian. The project aims to give young people an exciting and engaging introduction to coding and also includes CPD (Continuing Professional Development) sessions for teachers in high schools and cluster primary schools.

Around 600 young people will benefit from Dundee & Angus College’s digital learning programme with Dundee Science Centre. This project will target young people in Dundee that are living in areas of multiple deprivation and are not currently engaged in digital skills. Code Academy classes and ‘portable lab’ sessions will introduce participants to a variety of computer science fields such as networking, programming and web design through short, practical sessions.

The other awardees are: College Development Network, Fife College, Forth Valley College, Glasgow Science Centre, Raspberry Pi Foundation, and West College Scotland in partnership with Renfrewshire Council.

Phil Worms, Computing and Schools Project lead at tech industry body ScotlandIS, said: “In its first year the Digital Xtra Fund has supported a wide range of innovative projects that will directly reach over 15,000 young people in Scotland. Over time the Fund has the potential to make a real difference to the skills landscape in Scotland but it requires the support of industry now if it is to succeed and grow.

“Digital Xtra won’t solve the skills gap overnight but if it continues to support organisations that engage young people in digital activities from an early age it will help provide us with a talent pipeline for the future. There are many opportunities for individuals and organisations to join us; from becoming an official funding partner to supporting regional activities to providing us with specialist expertise.”

More information about the successful projects funded by Digital Xtra can be found HERE

03 Oct 2016

Digital Xtra opens new round of funding for extracurricular computing projects

Scotland’s Digital Xtra Fund launched in May 2016 and awarded £250,000 to 12 projects, which expect to reach a combined total of 10,500 young people across the country by March 2017. An additional £150,000 has now been made available in response to the high number of applications received for the first round of funding.

Applications open today (3 October) via Public Contracts Scotland and eligible organisations can bid for grants from £1,500 to a maximum £25,000 per project to support computing science and digital skills focused extracurricular activities for 2016/17.

Funding is intended to support enterprising organisations that give young people aged 16 and under opportunities to learn computer science related digital skills and contribute to widening the provision of extracurricular computing science related activities across Scotland.

Scottish Government strategy sets out an ambitious plan to make Scotland a world-class digital nation by 2020. Over 84,000 people work in digital technologies roles across the Scottish economy and skills development will be an integral component in helping young people prepare for the digital future. Career opportunities are significant, with up to an estimated 11,000 job opportunities available in Scotland annually.

Shirley-Anne Somerville, Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science, said:

“The Scottish Government is determined to close the digital skills gap faced by all sectors across the economy. We made clear our commitment to invest in the digital skills of our young people in the digital teaching and learning strategy we published last week. This additional funding for Digital Xtra will give thousands more young people opportunities to strengthen their digital skills through their engagement in a range of innovative projects.”

Digital Xtra has been developed and funded by the Digital Scotland Business Excellence Partnership whose partners include Scottish Government, Skills Development Scotland, Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Scottish Funding Council, Education Scotland, ScotlandIS, and industry representatives.

It is anticipated that industry, employers and other funders will contribute to the fund in subsequent years, making this a sustainable approach.

Applications will be assessed by an expert panel which includes representatives from across Scotland’s digital technologies industry, Scottish Government and education.

Phil Worms, Computing and Schools Project Lead at ScotlandIS, says:

“The panel was impressed by the many innovative ideas and partnerships received in the first round so it is fantastic to be able to offer a further funding opportunity this year and make extracurricular computing activities available to even more young people.

“Once again we are very keen to see collaborative applications involving different partners and projects that foster greater links between industry, young people and the wider community. Projects should also show how participants will be involved in digital making and what computer science related skills they will learn.”

The Digital Xtra Fund welcomes applications from existing initiatives looking to expand their activities, as well as from innovative new projects and pilots that could be rolled out further in future. All applicants should clearly demonstrate potential for scalability and sustainability, as well as showing how they will reach previously underrepresented groups.

A total of £250,000 was awarded to 12 projects in August 2016, supporting a diverse range of activities including the use of wildlife cameras to help school pupils learn to code using Raspberry Pi computers, coding taught through local libraries, and a forensic investigation project.

Apply online at PUBLIC CONTRACTS SCOTLAND

Public Contracts Scotland Helpline Number: 0800 222 9003

Archives: Shirley-Anne Somerville

BT signs up to support digital skills charity

Minister unveils Digital Xtra Fund as Scotland’s first dedicated digital skills charity for young people

From drones to little lighthouses – 10 inspiring projects receive Digital Xtra Fund grants

Digital Xtra opens new round of funding for extracurricular computing projects