Ufi offers £1.5m to organisations using tech to tackle systemic barriers in adult learning

Six organisations have been offered funding from Ufi’s £1.5 million VocTech Challenge Impact Network + Grant Fund to refine and deploy digital solutions and approaches to tackle systemic barriers in adult learning.

Informed by the learnings from our place-based collaborations and drawing on extensive research as part of Ufi’s VocTech Challenge: Skills for an Economy in Transition programme, the grant fund is designed to tackle three fundamental challenges contributing to the UK’s continued low rates of adult participation in learning and the development of skills for work.

1. Employer integration:
   How can technology be used to integrate and reflect employers’ changing needs so that the skills of the available workforce better reflect the needs of local employers?
2. Pathways into and within work:
   How can technology be used to increase the visibility, accessibility and uptake of pathways from learning into work, or from one type of work into another, particularly in regional growth sectors?
3. Vocational language barriers:
   How can technology be used to support adults with in-demand vocational skills, but who don’t speak English as their first language, gain the industry-specific English required by employers?

We were looking for imaginative yet practical plans with the potential to greatly increase adult participation in learning and to catalyse systemic change across the UK skills system. Each organisation aims to support at least 1,000 learners during their project and develop a plan that sustains and scales the solution beyond the grant-funded period.

The new cohort announced today will address the three challenges across a range of sectors including green energy, automotive maintenance and hospitality. They are developing ideas that go beyond single products or providers, fostering collaboration across organisations and driving change in the UK skills system.  All of the projects are focused on practical solutions that not only address the needs of the learners, but also aim to build long-term, sustainable employment opportunities.

The VocTech Challenge Impact Network + Grant Fund cohort manager, Caroline O’Donnell, said:

The VocTech Challenge Impact Network + Grant Fund represents a new approach to Ufi grant funding. As part of the cohort, all six organisations will join the VocTech Challenge Impact Network, a supportive community of organisations and individuals working alongside each other as part of an active, programme designed to create connections, share knowledge, test assumptions and accelerate adoption and deployment of vocational technology.

The organisations offered grant funding as part of the VocTech Challenge Impact Network + Grant Fund are:

• The Institute for the Future of Work (IFOW) will address skills shortages in Cornwall and Grimsby, where industrial decline has left communities with limited access to sustainable employment opportunities, particularly in the growing green energy sector. Building on their AI-driven platform Flourish, IFOW will develop resources to help job seekers identify their skills gaps and connect them with relevant training to secure a green job. They plan to create systemic change in rural communities which could serve as a model for broader adoption.

• BE-ST, Scotland’s National Innovation Centre for the built environment, will help to close the green skills gap in Scotland by developing a comprehensive AI-based platform for job and course matching, specifically targeting Green Net-Zero occupations. By addressing both employer and employee needs, they hope this solution will help to close the skills gap and reduce fragmentation in the green skills sector.

• First Step Trust know that confidence with written tests remains a significant barrier to learning in the automotive sector, especially for those with negative experiences of learning. Their existing solution to this problem, a VR based training programme, allows learners to practice and demonstrate skills in a virtual garage without needing to read or write. Partnering with Halfords Autocentres, this project will look to scale this solution across the UK to help improve routes into work for adults looking to join the automotive industry.

• Klik2Learn will address the English language gap among migrant adults in the UK, creating pathways into employment by providing innovative language learning solutions. Klik2Learn will build on their current language platform to offer employability skills and sector-specific training for asylum seekers and refugees with limited English. They will work with partners including City & Guilds and Glasgow Life, to develop short online courses for learners in Glasgow. This project has the potential to create a step change in how refugees are supported into work and how vocational language skills are taught, providing a clear path into employment in high-demand sectors.

• FlashAcademy® know that poor English proficiency among employees limits job access, performance, and career growth across various sectors. Harnessing advances in large language models, FlashAcademy will develop a platform using AI to create tailored English lessons and assessments that address industry-specific needs. They will complete pilots with existing industry partners, including FE colleges, training providers, Local Authorities and charities.

• Aposto aim to address the challenges around event staff shortages in the UK. With support from the Football Safety Officers Association and the UK Crowd Management Assocation, Aposto will expand on their existing platform and create a ‘digital passport’ system where temporary workers in the events sector can store their training credentials and access multiple job opportunities, streamlining the recruitment process. This shift from one-to-one employer relationships to a one-to-many model could bring systemic change to the sector, reducing recruitment costs and making it easier for workers to find work and develop careers in the sector.