A Sky-High Christmas Gift for TECgirls

We’re wrapping up the year with some seriously exciting news and we couldn’t think of a better early Christmas present to share with our community.

TECwomen CIC has secured just under £100,000 in UK government funding to support our TECgirls Reach For The Sky Festival and our growing Take Flight education programme. This funding will help our team inspire even more girls and young women across Cornwall to explore bold, brilliant futures in aviation, aerospace and STEM.

What is the Reach For The Sky Challenge Fund?

This funding comes from the government’s £750,000 Reach For The Sky Challenge Fund, a national initiative designed to open doors for young people from all backgrounds into careers across aviation and aerospace.

From engineering and sustainability to technical and creative STEM roles, the fund supports projects that show young people what’s possible, especially those who may not see these industries as “for them”.

As Aviation, Maritime and Decarbonisation Minister Keir Mather puts it:

“Reach for the Sky plays a vital role in helping to break down barriers to opportunity and encouraging the next generation to aim high.”

We couldn’t agree more.

Bringing Big Opportunities to Rural Cornwall

One of the funded projects is our TECgirls Reach For The Sky Festival, led by Caitlin Gould, Director of TECwomen CIC. Our work focuses on improving access to STEM education for girls living in Cornwall’s rural and coastal communities, because geography should never limit access and aspiration.

The festival returns to Spaceport Cornwall on 20th June, as part of a wider celebration around International Women in Engineering Day.

This year, we’re taking things up another level.

Expect an even more powerful focus on women in engineering and aerospace, real-world career pathways, hands-on experiences and powerful role models who prove that girls belong in these spaces.

Cornish Girls Get New Opportunities to Take Flight

Thanks to this funding, we’ll also be expanding opportunities for older girls, including the launch of a supported day work experience programme. This will give young women first-hand exposure to aviation and aerospace workplaces, not just learning about careers, but stepping directly into them.

Our Take Flight programme has been growing year on year, and this support means we can reach more girls than ever before.

As Caitlin shares:

“We are absolutely delighted that our TECgirls Reach For The Sky Festival and Take Flight education programme have been funded to help more girls explore STEM roles in aviation and aerospace.

Without support from the Challenge Fund, ambitious events like ours simply wouldn’t be possible.”

REAL Work Experience

We’re also thrilled to continue our aviation-focused work experience week, following an incredibly successful pilot earlier this year with the Parnall Aircraft Company.

More than 20 girls applied for just 10 places, making it the first aviation-focused work experience programme of its kind in Cornwall. Since then, demand has only grown.

“Young women are crying out for opportunities,” Caitlin adds, “especially programmes designed specifically to support them and help them thrive.”

Big Impact from a Small Team.

Alongside festivals and work experience, our TECgirls afterschool clubs and challenge days have already engaged hundreds of girls, introducing them to careers across aviation, from engineering and sustainability to marketing and operations, with the support of Cornwall Airport and brilliant industry partners.

Our Operations Director Suzanne Terry sums it up perfectly:

“You wouldn't know it from the amount of work we do, but we are a very small team of just five, bolstered by an amazing group of volunteers

This funding is essential for us to make a real impact for girls in rural communities. In the year ahead, we’re excited to work with even more partners to grow the festival and our year-long education programme.”

Looking Ahead to 2026

This latest round of Reach For The Sky funding will help expand opportunities across the UK, breaking down barriers, building confidence and sparking interest in high-skilled careers that are vital to our future economy.

For us, it means one thing above all else: More girls believing they belong and more futures taking flight right here in Cornwall.

We can’t wait to show you what’s next.

Happy Christmas!