About the fund

The Bairdwatson Charitable Trust provides grants in Scotland for work relating to training for employment, employment support and vocational skills.  John Neil Bairdwatson was, until his death, the managing director of Caldervale Engineering Services, based in Airdrie, a business which had been established by his late father and which Mr Bairdwatson had been involved with most of his adult life. He had many long serving employees and he wished to protect their employment in the event of his death.

From this initial motive, and Mr Bairdwatson’s long standing commitment to manufacturing employment, he developed the idea of establishing a Charitable Trust, to which he would leave his shares in the business and which would place particular emphasis on encouraging education and employment. Unfortunately, Mr Bairdwatson died before the Trust could be established, but his widow established the Trust after his death. The first grants were made in 2011 and in 2023 the management of the Trust was transferred to Foundation Scotland.

Purpose of the fund

The fund supports organisations that provide training for employment, employment support, and vocational skills.

It will only support work with disadvantaged young people who are not engaging with education or who are leaving school without a positive destination, and who are furthest from the labour market. This includes support to help young people re-engage with school, progress to further education or training, develop skills for work, and move towards employment.

Additional criteria

Groups can apply for funding for a maximum period of 12 months. The maximum grant available is £20,000.  Please note this is a large grant programme and if you require funding for £5,000 or below please refer to other funds available on our website which will be more proportionate to your request.

This fund is only open to organisations with an annual income up to £2,500,000 in the most recent financial year.

This current funding round has up to £150,000 in total for grant distribution for applications that best fit with the fund purpose.

How to apply

Applications submitted by 6th February 2026 can expect decisions by the end of May 2026.  Please ensure your application and supporting documents are submitted by the application deadline.

If you would like to review the questions you will be asked to answer before starting the form, you can see them here.

If you have already started an application form and have not completed it, please login here to resume.

If you are unsure if your project meets the criteria, you can contact Linda Phillips via linda@foundationscotland.org.uk or 0131 524 0309.