Applications for the Turing Scheme for the academic year 2025 to 2026 are about to open. This blog discusses what you need to apply for this year's scheme drawing on my previous experience of successful grant applications to the fund.
The Turing Scheme offers funding to schools to support their students to pursue study placements around the world. If you haven't heard of this fund before, it replaces the Erasmus scheme and the British Council funding for school trips. I have had many successes with this fund, securing money to take students to Rwanda, China and Germany amongst others. This year, individual schools can apply for up to £50,000.
In your school's grant application you need to outline your Project Vision (weighting: 10%, up to 400 words). To be successful with this you need to ensure that your international trip will
give your students the opportunity to:
develop their skills
gain international experience
boost their employability
This can include students developing their language skills and a deeper understanding of other cultures. Successful bids I have written have included completing an enterprise project with a partner school in the host country, visiting sites of historical importance and immersive language learning.
Your grant appliation will need to detail how the trip will enhance students skills (weighting: 30%, up to 1,000 words). In the past, I have won funding for trips that focus more on educational outcomes as well as trips that focus more heavily on employment outcomes. What matters is that the application is clear about the skills the students will gain and also how they link to the destination students will visit. When writing this section of the bid, you need to think carefully about how you will measure the impact of the trip. I find it helpful to consider how you can use a range of quantitative and qualitative data to show this. Perhaps you can use some case studies of specific students alongside pre and post questionnaires and students academic results.
Advancing social justice (weighting: 30%, up to 1,000 words) is another key strand of the grant application. This will benefit schools with high FSMYou will need to include information about your school's demographics, including students who are disadvantaged, from underrepresented groups and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). When I have applied in the past, I have spent time with the school considering how to recruit and support students from these groups. For example, we tried to ensure that the selection processes do not favour those students who are more competent academically (in one case, we removed the written element entirely). We have put in support for students who might be interested, but might be more easily put off by providing mentoring for them throughout the process and have met with students and parents and carers to help further. We have also made it really clear to families that we can apply for readiness for trips funding to support with things like getting a passport and having vaccines.
You will need a strong delivery plan (weighting: 30%, up to 250 words for each of the following: timings; risks and issues; roles responsibilities and governance; assurance arrangements).
Lastly, you will need to detail your budget. The Turing Scheme’s application process rewards applicants who can show how they will ensure value for money for the UK taxpayer in the way that they manage their projects. So make sure that you make it clear how you will do this.
Travel funding is provided at a set rate for each destination country or territory. Funding is available for:
travel costs for one return journey between the UK and the destination the placement takes place in, including transfers
contributions to living costs
organisational support
passports, visa application fees, vaccines, medical certificates and travel insurance for disadvantaged students (known as readiness to travel funding)
specialist support for students with SEND – including students with additional learning needs (ALN) in Wales and additional support needs (ASN) in Scotland
staff accompanying students on school placements
If you are interested in running an international trip, but are worried about the increased organisational load, you can apply for up to £315 per student to provide support with administration and implementation costs.
For the academic year 2025 - 2026, the Turing Scheme fund opens in the first week of February 2025 and is open for 6 weeks. Successful applicants will find out by June 2025, which means you will have time to get things organised before the start of the next academic year.
If you are a school and you want support with applying, please do get in touch!
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