Competitor Support Fund

WorldSkills UK recognises the level of commitment that is required from competitors and their organisations throughout the competition journey, from participating in UK-wide national skills competitions to potential involvement in Squad and Team UK.

Our vision is to ensure that young people from all backgrounds can access our life-changing programmes. We aim to widen participation in our programmes and tackle barriers to access faced by young people. To break down some of these barriers we launched our Competitor Support Fund, in partnership with the University Vocational Awards Council. The Fund will help cover essential costs for those who who are experiencing financial difficulties, which may prevent them from accessing and participating in our competition-based development programmes.

The Fund will provide a contribution towards the cost of taking part in our on-site National Qualifiers and the National Finals. Remote/online qualifiers are exempt from this Fund.

Eligibility criteria

This is a discretionary Fund and there is no automatic entitlement for support.

The level of funding provided will depend on individual circumstances and meeting the eligibility criteria.

To be eligible, competitors must:

be participating in a current WorldSkills UK skills competition
demonstrate need for applying for the fund, for example any barriers that may prevent them from taking part in competitions
attend and take part in the competition for which they registered
be a student or apprentice at a UK college, University, employer or training provider

How much will I be awarded?

The amount of funding available is limited, once the Fund allocation has been reached no further applications will be considered. Due to the high volume of applications, please apply early to avoid disappointment.

Click on each tile below to find out what we may be able to help with if you are eligible.

Travel costs (up to a maximum of £150)

travel costs for attending a national qualifier or a national final
all UK travel must be by public transport where possible. This is in line with our primary objective to reduce our environmental impact.
travel by public transport, should be planned as far in advance as possible to obtain the cheapest
private vehicles may only be used in exceptional circumstances. Private vehicles or hire cars may not be used solely because of personal convenience or preference
if there are exceptional circumstances that mean a private vehicle is necessary, this needs to be approved in advance of an application being made.

Clothing / equipment (up to a maximum of £100)

applications for specialist equipment or clothing that is necessary and required for specific competitions will be considered, where it is not provided by the competitors own organisation or by the competition organising partner
competitors will be advised in advance by the competition organising partner what items will be supplied to them during the competition and what items they need to bring themselves.

Care costs (up to a maximum of £150)

childcare costs – in cases where payment is made to a registered childcare provider or nursery to look after children during participation in the competition
applications will not be accepted in cases where children are looked after by family members or friends
care costs – in cases where payment is made to a carer to look after a person who a competitor would normally care for, this excludes family members or friends.

Backfill costs for employers (up to a maximum of £150)

where a competitor has to take time off work to attend a competition, their employer can claim backfill costs if they have to bring someone else in to do the competitors job for the duration that they are taking part in the competition
only small and medium enterprises with fewer than 250 employees are eligible to make a claim.

Other areas of support

any costs that do not fall within the above categories will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

What is not covered by the fund

The Fund does not cover the following:

accommodation costs for attending the national qualifiers (accommodation for national finalists will be paid for)
food / meals purchased outside of what is provided during the competition
cost for staff and family or friends attending the competitions with their learners
equipment bought by the college for training purposes
clothing that is not specifically required for the competition, competitors are expected to wear what they would normally wear when they are on their study programme
parking costs associated with attending the competition
travel to and from the host venue during the National Finals.

Application guidance

ensure you are eligible and that the fund is accepting applications
complete the online application form, including your supporting evidence
applications can be made directly by a competitor, or on their behalf by their organisation
applications can be made once written confirmation has been received of a place at a national qualifier or national final (national qualifiers that are taking place online or remotely are exempt from this Fund)
applications can be made for competing at the national qualifier stage and again, upon successfully reaching the national final stage

Supporting evidence for your application form

no application will be approved without supporting evidence
supporting evidence can be uploaded on the online application form
supporting documents could include copies of tickets for travel on public transport, invoices for equipment, a letter from an employer confirming that a competitor has to take time off work to take part in a competition; receipts for childcare costs
if the supporting documentation is not received within 4 weeks of the date of submission of the online application, the application will be withdrawn.

Assessment and award

all eligible applications will be assessed
an assessor may contact you by telephone to obtain further information
all applications are considered by a panel which will meet periodically during the time the fund is open
the final decision cannot be changed and no discussion will be entered into although we will try to provide feedback if we can
following the panel meeting, we will contact you by email to let you know the outcome, we aim to give you a decision within 3 weeks of receiving your application
if your application is successful, you will be asked to provide evidence of costs that have been incurred for taking part in competition activity, if not submitted at the point of application. This could be copies of receipts or invoices.

Payments

if your application is successful, you will be sent an online form to complete your payment details and to provide evidence for the funds you are claiming
payments are made by bank transfer. Please ensure you carefully check the bank details you submit, incorrect details will cause payment loss or delay
grants awarded do not need to be repaid. However, if a grant has been awarded and subsequently there is no attendance at the competition, we will request that monies are repaid back to us.

As a publicly funded organisation, WorldSkills UK must meet strict auditing requirements, therefore, no grant can be paid, without a fully completed application form and submission of evidence of costs. If insufficient information is provided or the Fund has been fully allocated, WorldSkills UK retains the right to withdraw the grant offer or refuse payment.

ALL applications will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

Apply for the Fund

The final deadline for applications are:

Friday 31 July 2026, 5pm for the National Qualifiers support.
Friday 18 December 2026, 5pm for the National Finals support. Applications for this stage will open on Tuesday 1 September 2026.

To ensure that eligible individuals/organisations can apply for funding, applications can be made up to 4 weeks after the end of the National Qualifier or the National Finals stages. Any claims made outside this period may be rejected