Education charity EDGE announce £300,000 innovation fund
The Edge Innovation Fund (@ukEdge) is a new grant fund designed to spark fresh thinking and innovation in education. The EIF will open with £300,000 and applications can be made from Tuesday 14th September 2021. The fund will remain open until the end of 2021 or until the funds to grant are exhausted whichever is the earliest.
The EIF will be refreshed on 1st January 2022 and will then re-open for applications. Details of the amount of funding available at that point will be announced on the Edge website.
The Edge Innovation Fund (EIF) will focus on projects which are viewed as “disruptive” in their thinking and approach, challenging current norms of thinking. The aim is to enable organisations to create proof of concept of new and innovative approaches to make education relevant.
Applications for grant funding can be made at any point and completed forms will be assessed for suitability at regular intervals during the lifetime of the fund.
All potential projects must meet the following criteria. The project must:
- Be innovative
- Be disruptive and challenging to the current education system approach
- Address the need for a broad and balanced curriculum containing both vocational and academic learning
- Address Edge’s strategic priorities – namely:
Support making education relevant–empowering young people to develop the knowledge, skills and behaviour needed for success as adults, workers, and citizens to play a role in society and address challenging global issues; supporting employers to feel that young people have the qualities they are looking for in a changing economy.
And at least 20% of the total project costs must be match funded.
Edge’s Director of Projects and Partnerships, Jane Samuels, commented:
“This is an exciting opportunity for schools, colleges and other educational and not-for-profit institutions to secure significant funding towards projects and initiatives which can deliver real impact in their area, equipping young people with skills for 21st century jobs and boosting local economies.”
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