Up to £500,000 for Youth Employment & Skills Development – Nuffield Foundation

The Nuffield Foundation has launched its Essential Employment Skills Fund, offering grants of up to £500,000 to support programmes helping young people facing significant barriers to employment develop the skills needed to access good jobs.

The fund aims to identify which approaches are most effective in improving essential employment skills among disadvantaged young people aged 16–24 across the UK.

Here's what you can expect:

• Up to £500,000 in grant funding

• Most evaluation grants expected to range between £200,000 and £400,000

• Funding for robust evaluation of employment skills programmes

• Potential additional funding towards programme delivery costs where other funding is unavailable

• Support for research partnerships between programme providers and independent evaluators

• Opportunities to develop and test evidence-based approaches

• Funding for measuring young people's progress towards employment

• Support for sharing research findings and scaling effective programmes

• Access to the Foundation's research and stakeholder networks

What projects can be funded?

The programme focuses on developing essential employment skills, including:

• Communication: Helping young people communicate confidently and effectively

• Teamwork & Collaboration: Developing the ability to work with others

• Problem-Solving: Strengthening decision-making and critical thinking

• Creativity: Encouraging innovative thinking and adaptability

• Planning & Organisation: Developing time management and prioritisation skills

• Leadership: Building confidence, responsibility and initiative

• Digital & Information Skills: Improving the ability to access, assess and use information effectively

These skills can be developed through activities such as:

• Vocational training and employability programmes

• Work experience and workplace learning

• Mentoring and coaching

• Enterprise and entrepreneurship programmes

• Volunteering and community projects

• Digital skills development

• Peer support and youth services

Who can apply?

Applications are expected from partnerships involving:

• Universities and research institutions

• Independent evaluation organisations

• Charities and nonprofit organisations

• Youth employment and training providers

• Schools and further education colleges

• Local authorities

• Community organisations delivering youth programmes

Important eligibility requirements:

• Programmes must support young people aged 16–24 living in the UK.

• Activities must focus on young people experiencing significant barriers to employment.

• Applicants must identify the essential employment skills being developed.

• Programmes should have existing evidence of promise, rather than being entirely new initiatives.

• Projects must include a robust impact evaluation and an assessment of programme delivery.

• Evaluation should track both skills development and progress towards employment.

• Applicants must demonstrate how young people's experiences and views have shaped the programme.

• Partnerships between delivery organisations and independent evaluators are strongly expected.

The Foundation anticipates that the evaluation organisation will act as the lead applicant, with charities, schools and other organisations participating as delivery partners.

Who should the projects support?

Priority groups may include young people who:

• Have low or no academic qualifications

• Have experienced school exclusion or persistent absence

• Have special educational needs or disabilities

• Experience mental health difficulties

• Have experience of the care system

• Are young parents or carers

• Live in areas with high youth unemployment

• Face multiple barriers to education, training and employment

Funding: Up to £500,000 for evaluation, with potential additional programme delivery funding where justified.

Outline Application Deadline: 10 December 2026