Kick Start Grants – British Science Week

Grant applications for British Science Week 2024 are now open!

APPLY HERE

Submit your application before 11.59 pm, 6 November 2023.

To help you better prepare the application, we provide you an overview of the questions that are asked on the application form. Download the document of application questions. You may wish to use it as a guide to draft your responses offline, or to help with your planning before you submit your application. Application must be submitted via the above link.

Our mission

Is your school keen to run events for British Science Week, but in need of a helping hand?

With the support of UK Research and Innovation, we provide Kick Start Grants to help schools in challenging circumstances to organise their own activities and events during British Science Week. Usually opened in autumn, the grants scheme aims to engage children who might not otherwise choose to participate in science, and to promote cross-curricular learning. All kinds of events and activities are eligible for support! 

Looking for inspiration?

Take a look at our latest Kick Start Grants 2023 case studies!

Find out how other schools celebrated British Science Week in previous years with the help of Kick Start Grants, and gather inspiration for your own events and activities in 2024 and beyond. 

You can also watch the Official Advice and Tips for Applying.

The video explained by one of our British Science Association staff give applicants tips on how they can make an application that stand out.

Types of grants 

• Kick Start Grant

A grant of £300 for your school to run an activity during British Science Week. 

• Kick Start Youth Grant

A grant of £150 for students aged 10-19 at your school to organise and deliver an activity during British Science Week.  

• Kick Start More Grant

A grant of £700 for your school to host a science event or activity that involves your students and the local community. The community can include families/carers, members of local community groups, local businesses and the local press. 

• Combined Kick Start Grant and Youth Grant

A grant of £450 for your school to run an activity during British Science Week and an additional activity organised and delivered by students aged 10-19. 

You can now apply for both a Kick Start Grant and a Kick Start Youth Grant at the same time, doubling your chances of receiving funding! We may, however, only offer your school one of the two grants, depending on the volume and quality of applications. 

Eligibility

To help you prepare for 2024 applications, please make sure you read the detailed Kick Start Grants 2024 guidelines before you apply.

We can only accept applications from state-funded, non-selective schools or colleges in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland which meet at least one of the following criteria:

• over 30% of pupils eligible for pupil premium or equivalent. 
• over 30% of pupils who are from ethnic minority backgrounds. * 
• small school based in a remote and rural location. ** 

* Ethnic minority backgrounds include all pupils who don’t self-describe as White British. It includes Irish, except in Northern Ireland. 

** Remote and rural schools are in postcodes listed as ‘rural’ under the Government’s Rural Urban classification system. You can look up your school’s classification at https://www.ukpostcodecheck.com/

Our priorities

We encourage applications for activities or events which align with our priorities, including those that:

• Involve children supported by pupil premium, from ethnic minority groups, with special educational needs or from any other underrepresented audiences.
• Involve children who wouldn’t normally choose to participate in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) activities.
• Are embedded in your local community and involve the wider community as a core audience.
• Challenge stereotypes about science, and link it to the children’s everyday life beyond school.
• Are cross-curricular and involve teachers, professionals or organisations from outside STEM.
• Raise awareness of the diverse range of careers that studying STEM subjects can lead to.
• Have an impact on STEM activities throughout the year, e.g., staff CPD or launching a new STEM initiative in your school.
• Allow children to take initiative and lead the activities.

In your application, be sure to explain as best as you can why your school would make excellent use of the Kick Start Grant.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at bsw@britishscienceassociation.org.