27 grants will inspire more young people into tech across Scotland

A Scottish charity that inspires young people to become actively involved in technology has awarded grants totalling nearly £120,000 to schools and community organisations.

Digital Xtra said the 27 grant recipients, across 17 local authorities, had been selected from 103 applications after an “in-depth evaluation process”. The successful applicants are said to have demonstrated “innovative and stimulating ways of engaging young people in computing and digital technologies”.

Among the regions to receive multiple grants are Aberdeenshire with five supported initiatives, Dundee, Stirling and West Lothian each with four projects, while Clackmannanshire, Fife, Glasgow, and North Ayrshire were each successful with two grants apiece.

Young people will gain skills in areas such as coding, games design and robotics.

More than 2,000 young people across the country are projected to engage in a variety of tech activities as a result of the funding, which is aimed at closing the digital skills gap and producing Scotland’s “next generation of digital innovators, leaders and technologists”.

Qualifying activities must teach young people skills such as coding, robotics, games design, data science and cyber security.

Among the recipients are St Thomas Aquinas secondary school in Glasgow which will create an all-girls code club, The STEMinists, to help increase uptake of computing science among female students. Learners will also develop skills such as logical and algorithmic thinking, testing and debugging, as well as teamwork and communication.

James Gillespie’s High School in Edinburgh was successful with its VEX Robotics Competition, which will see pupils design, build and programme a robot to compete against other schools.

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The latest round of awards takes the total value of grants handed out since 2016 to almost £1.2 million, helping 210 extracurricular computing initiatives to engage nearly 60,000 young people across the country. The fund is supported by a range of partners including Baillie Gifford, Skyscanner, Adobe, Cirrus Logic and CGI, as well as the Scottish Government.

Kraig Brown, Digital Xtra’s partnerships and development manager, said: “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.

“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.

“This ongoing skills deficit means engaging and upskilling young people through both formal and informal learning channels is more crucial than ever.”

Deputy first minister Kate Forbes said: “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.

“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.”

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