Care workers, women returning to employment and builders to gain practical AI skills
Four Barnsley training projects will share over £800,000 to bring practical artificial intelligence skills into everyday workplaces.
- Four Barnsley training projects will share over £800,000 to bring practical artificial intelligence skills into everyday workplaces.
- The AI Upskilling Challenge Fund targets support where it is needed most, from frontline healthcare to local construction and small businesses.
- Successful solutions from this Tech Town pilot could set a national blueprint for equipping a generation across Britain.
Frontline care staff, builders, and mothers returning to work across Barnsley will gain practical AI skills through four new training projects being awarded funding today (Tuesday 3 November).
Backed by more than £800,000 from the AI Upskilling Challenge Fund, these local initiatives will bring practical, problem-solving tools directly to hospital wards, construction sites, and small businesses.
Four organisations will deliver this hands-on training, focusing on practical outcomes that save time, boost confidence and improve employability:
- Barnsley College is taking mobile AI training units directly to hospital and social care staff and the wider community, offering practical taster sessions that build confidence and support career progression.
- Atheni will help 140 people, most aged 40 or over, across six manufacturing, engineering and construction firms in Barnsley. They’ll use AI shaped around each company’s documents and shared trade context, to help with quotes, tenders and safety paperwork.
- Fossu (Ignite AI), with Barnsley YMCA, Postnatal Minds and Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber of Commerce, will run challenge-led programmes and buildathons for 100 residents, helping women returning to work and young people use AI to solve real problems facing local businesses and communities.
- Optimise Cyber Solutions, in partnership with Abbeydale Training, will support twenty small businesses across Barnsley to adopt AI safely, confidently and effectively. Combining their expertise in training, digital skills and responsible AI adoption, the partnership will help businesses move beyond basic AI awareness to practical workplace implementation, improving productivity while prioritising the development of the next generation of female AI leaders.
The pilots form part of the Barnsley Tech Town initiative, demonstrating the government’s commitment to rewiring how public services and skills are delivered. By bringing central and local government together, it returns power to local communities and ensures AI training is designed directly around Barnsley’s unique economic needs.
AI Minister Kanishka Narayan said:
I know people are worried about what AI could mean for their careers. As this technology changes workplaces, the government will not leave people to navigate this new era alone.
The schemes we are backing in Barnsley will help set the standard for how we equip people from all walks of life with the skills and confidence they need. By working in partnership with businesses and communities, we are ensuring AI empowers workers, is shaped around local economic opportunities, and builds a future where everyone shares in the rewards.
Minister for the Future of Work, Kate Dearden, said:
AI is already changing the way we work, and successful adoption depends on workers having the skills and confidence to be part of that change.
Whether you’re a care worker, a builder or a small business owner, it’s important that people understand how AI could change their work and have the skills to help shape how it is used.
That’s why we’re backing projects like this pilot in Barnsley, which will provide practical training shaped around local businesses, their workforces and the needs of the local economy.
Barnsley was named the UK’s first Tech Town in February, as an example of how AI can improve everyday life through better public services, stronger local businesses and new opportunities for jobs and skills. Working with local schools, colleges, employers, and the NHS, the programme will identify successful approaches that could be rolled out nationwide, helping ensure communities across Britain share in the benefits of AI.
Councillor Luke Wheat, Barnsley Council’s Cabinet spokesperson for Regeneration and Assets, said:
Tech Town is about making new technology work for Barnsley people and businesses. This funding means practical AI support will be taken directly into workplaces and communities across the borough.
These four projects will help people build confidence and learn skills they can use in their jobs, both now and in the future. It’s about making sure new technology brings real benefits to people’s working lives.
We’ll learn from what works here in Barnsley and share that with others. At the same time, we’ll keep working towards our ambition to become the UK’s leading digital town, making sure our communities across the borough share in the opportunities that growth brings.
Other Tech Town projects are helping Barnsley residents prepare for work and exploring ways to improve local healthcare. The AI Career Launchpad will offer six months of training and paid work placements through Barnsley College. The Getting Job Ready with AI pilot helps jobseekers find roles, improve applications and prepare for interviews. At Barnsley Hospital, another pilot is testing how AI could improve patient care, reduce missed appointments and cut paperwork for staff.
Across the country, more workers and young people will have opportunities to build their skills and enter the tech sector. The government’s AI Skills Boost initiative aims to equip 10 million UK workers with key AI skills by 2030. A further 10,000 work experience placements will help young people take their first steps into the digital and tech sector over the next three years.
Local communities will also get more support to make AI work for them. Building on the experience of Barnsley, the Budget announced a £30 million investment for three of Yorkshire’s regional Mayors, to roll out AI in the service of their communities.
The government is also backing research into what AI means for people’s jobs and living standards. An additional £23 million over three years will support the AI Economics Institute, the world’s first government-backed research institution dedicated to studying AI’s impact on productivity, growth and the wider economy.
Notes to Editors
David Akeroyd, Principal and CEO of Barnsley College, said:
Health and social care staff do vital work, and Barnsley College is making it easier for them to develop AI skills around the demands of their roles.
By offering flexible, practical training in workplaces and out in the community, we’ll help people build confidence in how AI could support their everyday work and progression – wherever they are in both their careers, and their understanding of AI.
Barnsley’s Tech Town ambitions should create opportunities for people across our community. This funding will help us reach staff who might otherwise struggle to access training and give them an accessible starting point for developing new skills.
Chris Annetts, Founder and CEO, Optimise Cyber Solutions said:
Artificial intelligence presents a tremendous opportunity for small businesses, but many lack the confidence, skills or knowledge to use it effectively and safely.
By working in partnership with Abbeydale Training, we’re bringing together our expertise to help local businesses turn AI into a practical tool that improves productivity, saves time and creates opportunities.
I am particularly proud to be supporting this initiative and contributing to Barnsley’s ambition to become a national leader in digital innovation.
Imelda Fossu, CEO, Ignite AI (Fossu Ltd) said:
The best way to learn AI is to build something with it. That’s why we’re delighted to be delivering Build Barnsley. It puts practical, hands-on AI skills in the hands of women returning to work and young people, who’ll work on real challenges set by local employers and community partners.
Louise Ballard, co-founder of Atheni said:
Nobody goes to work to copy and paste. AI can help with the repetitive parts of almost any role, and the people who know the job, whether they’re in the office or on site, bring the judgement and experience to make it useful. Put those together and the combination is formidable. We’re delighted to be working with teams in Barnsley, and what we learn together here could help firms like these right across the country.
Over £800,000 has been awarded across the four successful delivery partners as follows:
- Atheni Strategy Limited: £231,000
- Optimise Cyber Solutions Limited: £200,000
- Fossu Limited: £195,188
- Barnsley College: £184,403
The AI Upskilling Challenge Fund was announced in July to identify and back innovative organisations capable of delivering practical AI training to underserved groups in Barnsley.
The Fund forms part of the Barnsley Tech Town initiative, which was announced on 3 February 2026, positioning Barnsley as the UK’s first government-backed Tech Town.
Tech Town supports Barnsley 2030: Barnsley Council’s long-term plan to build a prosperous, better, fairer and more inclusive borough.
For further information see: www.optimisecyber.com/, www.weareignite.ai/build-barnsley or contact barnsley@atheni.ai
About Atheni: Atheni helps people make AI part of their everyday work. Its own AI-powered platform tailors training to each person, their role and their organisation, so whole teams change the way they work across whatever tools they already have. Founded in 2023 by Mackenzie Howe and Louise Ballard, Atheni works across sectors including manufacturing, financial and professional services, and further education. More about its work in Barnsley: atheni.ai/barnsley/
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