Bursaries

Working with partners, we recognised that young people often faced additional barriers in getting to colleges and workplaces, and in achieving qualifications. The pandemic and subsequent cost of living crisis identified a growing gap in funding support for young people who  were the most financially vulnerable.

We identified a need to provide direct financial support to these young people, and together with our partners, designed a new approach to supporting financially vulnerable young people between 16 to 25 years old. In October 2020, the Foundation announced its Bursary.

In October 2023, with support from other funders, the Wee Bursary was launched in Glasgow. Supporting children and young people (11-25 years), the bursary has a range of referral partners from schools and youth based organisations across Glasgow.

In October 2025, with support from other funders, the Brummie Bursary was launched in Birmingham. Supporting young people (16-25 years) the bursary has a range of referral partners from youth based organisations across Birmingham

We are developing our plans for 2 further city based bursaries in Edinburgh and London. We hope to have those launched in 2026. In the meantime the Foundation will continue to solely fund bursaries in those 2 cities: supporting young people overcome hardship and providing financial help towards costs including work ready qualifications, energy bills, food, clothing, IT and data kit, and travel.

The Foundation’s financial education partner Money Ready acts as a referral partner. It supports the young people who apply for a bursary to improve their own financial education through online and in-person programmes: encouraging a more sustainable approach and upskilling young people to more effectively manage their future finances.

Charities and young people continue to report on the positive impact of the Bursary. Sometimes, just a little funding makes a huge difference to young people’s lives. We see the positive impact bursaries have, please visit our annual report for more information.