Teachers, employers and support

Raising Aspirations FAQs 

Frequently asked questions

Your school or college must:  

  • Have received an invite to apply from by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority.  
  • Be school or college located in the Leeds City Region. Privately funded secondary schools and colleges are not eligible to apply.  
  • Be a part of the West Yorkshire Careers Hub.   
  • Have a named ‘Careers Leader’ in post, who is employed by the school or college and is either part of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) or has direct links into SLT as defined in the Government’s Careers Strategy. The Careers Leader must be either committed to, or have already undertaken, relevant training.

We've listed the The Raising Aspirations Fund eligible and ineligible spend for your reference.

The project is to run during the academic year 2023 /24 for your students in Year 9, 10 or 12. This would be your current Year 8, 9 and 11 cohort.

The project should aim to target a disadvantaged group of your choosing. This could be young people with Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND), those on Education Health Care Plans (EHCP), children looked after, Pupil Premium, those under achieving, English as an additional language (EAL), Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic (BAME) groups, those with low attendance. If you have a group in mind and want clarification on suitability, please contact us.

This is open to your creativity!  Your project needs to have a focus on Green Skills, but this could be in any industry. Consider why you have chosen the target group, what are the outcomes of the project in the first year and how will this affect the student’s future. Speak to your colleagues, your Enterprise Adviser and business contacts and generate some ideas and support. Remember the project needs to be sustainable once the funded project has ended.

Where MIS systems allow, we expect schools to utilise Compass+ and incorporate Future Skills Questionnaire into the project, to measure distance travelled. Please highlight in your applications if your MIS system is incompatible with Compass+. (Colleges are excluded from this criteria).

You can contact the team via email, EnterpriseAdvisers@the-lep.com to request some time to talk through your ideas with and Enterprise Coordinator from the School Partnership Team.

You are able to view the application form, complete and return to EnterpriseAdvisers@the-lep.com

We prefer electronic applications. However, if you are unable to do so, you can save a copy of the application from the how to apply section and return to: 

West Yorkshire Combined Authority, School Partnership Team, 4th Floor, Wellington House, 40 – 50 Wellington Street, Leeds, LS1 2DE  

If you have provided an email address on your application you will receive notification within 48 hours, you must also provide an alternative email at the point of application. If you submit a hardcopy you will be contacted via your preferred method of contact. Please make sure your email address is correct, if any of your details change please contact the School Partnership Team so they can ensure your details are correct. Be sure to check your junk mail folder if you can't find it. 

All applications are reviewed and scored against a specific assessment criteria.

See our up to date information on timescales and the status of applications.

We try to answer messages within 48 hours, if your request is urgent please email the team, EnterpriseAdvisers@the-lep.com or speak to your Enterprise Coordinator. 

Email the team EnterpriseAdvisers@the-lep.com and explain the situation, ensure you include a copy of the application you wish to submit. This must be prior to the deadline for applications of 31 March 2023. 

We will provide feedback on request. The feedback will be drawn from comments from the Advisory Board. 

We are constantly looking at ways to improve the funding process and support you as much as we can. We really welcome your feedback, please email the team with your comments, EnterpriseAdvisers@the-lep.com