£200,000 for Careers Support for Young People with Learning Disabilities – Career Ready Fund

The Henry Smith Foundation Career Ready Fund provides £200,000 over four years to organisations helping young people with learning disabilities move towards meaningful paid employment. It focuses on embedding trained job coaches in mainstream and SEND schools, starting careers support from around age 14.

Here’s what you can expect:

• £200,000 grant per organisation

• £50,000 per year for four years

• Around 8 grants expected to be awarded

• Funding can cover core costs including salaries, rent, utilities and staff wellbeing

• Support to embed trained job coaches within schools

• Funding for structured vocational profiling and careers preparation

• Support to create meaningful, well-matched work experience with employers

• Projects should build pathways into supported internships, employment and paid work

• Funding can be used to train or recruit staff in supported employment techniques.

Who can apply?

• UK registered charities and Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs)

• Not-for-profit CICs with an asset lock

• Other eligible not-for-profit charitable organisations

• Organisations must have an annual income below £3 million

• Applicants need at least one year of audited or independently examined accounts

• Organisations should have experience supporting young people with learning disabilities

• Applicants need existing relationships with mainstream and/or SEND schools and the ability to embed job coaches within them

• Activity must take place in the UK.

Expression of Interest deadline: 2 September 2026 at 5pm. Successful organisations will be invited to submit a full application by 23 October 2026 at 5pm.