Education Pathways

We want to see an education system in Scotland which acts as a pathway out of poverty. We want to support solutions which enable those experiencing poverty and trauma to access and participate in education, developing skills, capabilities, resilience and achievements that will help them thrive.

Education is recognised as one of the best protections against poverty. Supporting people through education and into secure and well-paid jobs improves their overall wellbeing and reduces their risk of financial hardship.

We also know that experiencing poverty and trauma in childhood can affect someone’s ability – and opportunities – to learn.

Since the Trust was established in 1961, support for education has been an important part of our work. Now we hope to build on this heritage by deepening the understanding of how access to education and skills interact with poverty and complex trauma.

In order to stay up-to-date with our work in this area, all updates will be shared on this page. You can also join our mailing list or follow our social channels.

The Robertson Trust Scholarship

The Robertson Trust Scholarship aims to improve access, retention and graduate outcomes for under-represented young people in higher education.

Managed in-house by The Robertson Trust, it is now in its 30th year. Over that time, the Scholarship has provided financial support to over 2000 young people. Through our bespoke self-development programme, Journey to Success, Robertson Scholars are also given access to high quality internships, mentoring, training and wellbeing support. 

Find out more about this work here.

Our Funds

We are particularly interested in work that focuses on the following issues:

  • supports educational engagement amongst children and young people experiencing or at risk of experiencing poverty
  • supports educational attainment amongst children and young people experiencing or at risk of experiencing poverty
  • supports the engagement of parents and wider family members (of children and young people experiencing or at risk of experiencing poverty) in their child’s education and learning

Types of initiatives could include: Widening access to education, engaging families in learning, mentoring schemes, tutoring, digital skills and access, youth work, volunteering, apprenticeships and practical placement learning.

Find out more about how to apply here.

Programme Awards

We currently do not have any open calls for our Programme Awards.

To keep informed of future funding opportunities, you can sign up to our mailing list or follow our social channels.