Sky launches Sky Up Academy Studios on Tour to upskill 250,000 digitally excluded young people

Sky today announces the launch of Sky Up Academy Studios On Tour, as part of its ambition to develop the digital skills of young people.

In April 2022, Sky launched plans to tackle digital inequality and provide support to a quarter of a million digitally excluded people through a new £10m fund. The programme, Sky Up, directly supports young people under the age of 25 from lower income areas to develop digital skills.

Nishy Lall, Head of Young People for Sky UK, said:

“Today’s expansion of Sky Up Academy Studios is part of our ambition to unlock opportunities for those who are most excluded. By expanding our Academy Studios across the UK we aim to help an extra 20,000 students a year to develop digital skills.”

The new Sky Up Academy Studios On Tour will build on Sky’s successful programme which has already inspired 167,000 young people looking to work in the creative industries.

Ipswich Academy is the first school to host the Academy Studios On Tour. The new mobile studio is now onsite and trained Sky staff are introducing students to the creative suite for them to make their own TV content.

The fully kitted out e-vehicle will visit schools across the four nations of the UK and Ireland to give young people from all backgrounds access to a creative studio to make their own TV content through the use of a pop-up photography studio and high-tech digital media suite inside the e-vehicle.

Abbie Thorrington, Headteacher at Ipswich Academy, said:

“This is a fantastic opportunity for our students. While content creation is part of everyday life for this generation, this project will ignite their minds, help them harness skills they don’t realise they have, and see how they can be used in whatever path they chose to take in the future. Thank you to Sky and their inspiring Academy Studios On Tour Team for all the hard work. We can’t wait to share the results.”

The next locations planned for the Tour will take place after the summer to coincide with the new academic year. If you believe your local school could benefit from the Sky Up Academy Studio On Tour, please visit my.skyup.sky/on-tour to book your experience.