Ufi Voctech Trust

Charity Number: 1081028

Annual Expenditure: £3.6M
Geographic Focus: Northern Ireland, Scotland

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Quick Stats

  • Total Assets: Approximately £50 million endowment
  • Annual Giving: £3.6 million (2024)
  • Success Rate: ~5% (VocTech Challenge); varies by program
  • Decision Time: 4 months from Stage 1 to final decision
  • Grant Range: £30,000 - £250,000
  • Geographic Focus: UK-wide (adult vocational learning)

Contact Details

Website: www.ufi.co.uk

Email: info@ufi.co.uk

Phone: 07702 185695

Pre-application Support: Ufi encourages applicants to attend online pre-application workshops and review supporting information in the Grant Funding section of their website.

Overview

Ufi VocTech Trust (charity number 1081028) was founded in 1998 to deliver the government's vision of a 'University for Industry' and launched Learndirect in 2000. After selling Learndirect in 2011, Ufi rebranded as Ufi VocTech Trust and now operates as an independent charity with approximately £50 million in assets. In 2024, Ufi awarded £3.6 million in grant and partnership funding. Led by Chief Executive Rebecca Garrod-Waters since 2014, Ufi champions the power of vocational technology (VocTech) to improve adult skills for work through grant funding, venture investment, and advocacy. The organization has a particular focus on supporting sectors, locations, skills levels, and individuals not well served by traditional or mainstream provision. Seven Ufi-supported organizations reached the Learning Technologies Awards 2024 finals, demonstrating the quality and impact of their funded projects.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

VocTech Activate: £30,000 - £60,000 for projects lasting 3-12 months. Supports early-stage digital tools and approaches that tackle vocational learning problems and get adults learning. The 2024 fund totaled £900k. Applications through online portal with fixed deadlines.

VocTech Challenge Impact Network + Grant Fund: £200,000 - £250,000 for projects addressing systemic barriers in adult learning. The 2024 fund totaled £1.5 million, with six organizations receiving funding. Applications through two-stage process with fixed deadlines.

VocTech Seed: Up to £50,000 for UK registered charities, trade organizations, existing learning providers, and employers testing new approaches to using digital technology for vocational learning.

VocTech Ignite: By invitation only. Helps projects with potential but not yet ready for full funding.

All applications require a MyUfi account and follow a two-stage process (Stage 2 by invitation only). Applications are evaluated by expert panels with final decisions made by the Board of Trustees.

Priority Areas

  • Adult vocational learning (ages 16+) across the UK
  • Digital tools and approaches that address real-world problems in vocational learning
  • Projects demonstrating innovation and risk justifying Ufi funding
  • Support for underserved sectors, locations, skills levels, and individuals
  • Solutions with scale and sustainability plans beyond the funding period
  • Projects addressing barriers neurodivergent adults face in gaining qualifications
  • Under-representation of learners from disadvantaged groups in tech sector
  • Green skills and net-zero related vocational training
  • Sector-specific training (events, manufacturing, electric vehicle maintenance)
  • AI-enabled learning solutions for employability and English language learning

What They Don't Fund

Project Types:

  • Pure research projects
  • Enterprise and entrepreneurship (many existing services cover this)
  • General mental health or well-being of workforce (unless directly linked to specific vocational skills)
  • Projects that only create new learning content without new learning tools
  • Projects aimed at children or traditional academic education

Organizational Types:

  • Projects not benefiting UK adult vocational learners
  • Organizations without clear UK impact (though overseas organizations may apply if demonstrating UK benefit)

Costs:

  • Organizational overheads
  • Capital costs of buildings (VocTech Activate specifically)
  • Items not directly related to project delivery
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Governance and Leadership

Chief Executive: Rebecca Garrod-Waters (since 2014). Prior to joining Ufi, Rebecca held senior roles including Director of Innovation at Advantage West Midlands and Assistant Director for Innovation & Technology Policy at the UK Department of Trade and Industry. Under her leadership, Ufi has grown into a significant grant funder and venture investor.

Chair of Trustees: Dominic Gill

Venture Partner: Nick Novak, who states: “The most important factor for me in making an investment is always the quality of the leadership team. Typically, the teams that are successful in the long-term are those with leadership that have enough experience to know how to navigate growing a new business whilst also having the humility to actively seek input from those around them.”

The organization operates through a Board of Trustees who make final funding decisions based on recommendations from expert panels selected for their relevant experience and expertise.

Application Process and Timeline

How to Apply

  • Response to feedback questions from Stage 1
  • Technical description of your idea
  • Project plan and budget
  • Demonstration of partnerships (formal agreements not required at deadline but must show planning)

Applications can be saved and returned to while the funding round is open.

Decision Timeline

Total Process: Approximately 4 months from Stage 1 submission to final decision

Typical Schedule:

  • Stage 1 applications submitted by deadline
  • Stage 1 feedback and invitations to Stage 2: ~2 months after deadline
  • Stage 2 submission deadline: ~3 weeks after invitation
  • Final decisions from Board of Trustees: ~2 months after Stage 2 deadline
  • Applicants notified as soon as possible after Board meeting

Notification Method: Email

Success Rates

VocTech Challenge Grant Fund: Over 130 applications received with 6 awards made = approximately 4.6% success rate

General: Highly competitive at both stages. Not everyone who progresses to Stage 2 receives funding.

Note: Ufi receives a large number of applications each year, making all funding rounds competitive.

Reapplication Policy

Unsuccessful Applicants: Welcome to reapply to future funding calls, provided new project objectives are distinct from previous applications. Each application is evaluated independently on its own merits.

Previous Grantees: Can apply to new funding calls to develop projects further, as long as project objectives are distinct from previous projects. Ufi does not have a “funding ladder” - new applications assessed on own merits.

Feedback: Broad feedback provided to all unsuccessful Stage 1 applicants; more detailed feedback available to Stage 2 applicants. Limited resources restrict extensive individual feedback due to high application volumes.

Application Success Factors

Direct Advice from Ufi

On Application Quality: “One good application is better than several mediocre ones” - submit your strongest application rather than multiple weaker ones.

On Partnerships: Don't need formal partnerships in place by deadline, but must demonstrate how you have discussed and planned collaborative delivery.

On Sustainability: “Ufi places very high value on projects that can demonstrate that they have scale and a sustainability plan that allows them to maintain, or increase, momentum beyond the period of their support.”

On Demonstrating Strength: Include quotes in applications to demonstrate the strength of your proposition.

On Leadership Quality (from Nick Novak, Venture Partner): Focus on demonstrating leadership team quality with enough experience to navigate business growth while maintaining humility to seek input from others.

Recent Funded Projects (2024)

VocTech Challenge Impact Network + Grant Fund Recipients:

  • Events Sector Training: Digital platform providing training and streamlining recruitment
  • Green Skills Platform: Job and course matching for Green Net-Zero occupations
  • First Step Trust: VR-based training for electric vehicle maintenance careers
  • AI Job Seeker Support: AI-enabled vocational training in Grimsby and Cornwall
  • AI English Learning: AI-created tailored English lessons for industry-specific needs
  • Klik2Learn: Language platform with employability skills and sector-specific training

VocTech Activate Recipients: Projects addressing neurodivergent adults' barriers to manufacturing qualifications; under-representation of disadvantaged groups in tech; net-zero workforce training needs.

Key Terminology and Language

Ufi consistently uses:

  • “VocTech” - vocational technology
  • “Scale” and “scalability”
  • “Systemic barriers”
  • “Adult vocational learning”
  • “Innovation and risk”
  • “Sustainability beyond funding period”
  • “Underserved communities/sectors”

Standing Out

  1. Demonstrate innovation and risk: Show why your project needs Ufi funding specifically (not just funding in general)
  2. Focus on tools, not content: Must offer new learning tools, not just new learning content
  3. Show scale potential: Clear path to growth and sustainability beyond funding period
  4. Target underserved groups: Projects serving sectors, locations, or individuals poorly served by mainstream provision
  5. Evidence user need: Use quotes and data to demonstrate real-world problems being addressed
  6. Strong team: Demonstrate leadership quality and relevant experience
  7. Technology-enabled: Clear how technology specifically improves vocational learning outcomes
  8. UK impact: Even if based overseas, clearly demonstrate direct benefit to UK adult vocational learners

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • Attend pre-application workshops: Ufi encourages this and provides valuable guidance for strengthening applications
  • Quality over quantity: Submit one strong application rather than multiple mediocre ones across different programs
  • Sustainability is critical: Must demonstrate clear plans for scale and momentum beyond the funding period - this is explicitly highly valued
  • Innovation justification: Show genuine innovation and risk that justifies charitable funding rather than commercial investment
  • Two-stage commitment: Stage 1 success only leads to Stage 2 invitation - prepare for 4-month process with significant Stage 2 work required
  • Focus on underserved: Projects addressing gaps in mainstream provision are prioritized - show how your work reaches those not well-served by traditional providers
  • Early planning pays off: While formal partnerships aren't required at deadline, demonstrating planning and discussion strengthens applications
  • Technology as enabler: Must clearly articulate how digital technology specifically improves learning outcomes, not just digitizing existing approaches

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