BT is offering cash awards of up to £75,000 for learning projects aimed at building relationships between Further and Higher Education Institutions and local communities.

A total of £500,000 is being awarded in the BT Lifelong Learning Awards for 'collaborative projects that illustrate the key themes of access, innovation and teamwork using ICT'.

Any institution involved in Further and Higher Education can apply, including Sixth Forms, Sixth Form colleges, FE colleges, universities and libraries (limited to one application each for Sixth Forms and libraries, and one for each department for FE and HE colleges). BT is also keen to sponsor organisations partnering with local community groups.

Projects must cover at least one of the following themes: Information and Communication Technology, Communication, Innovation in learning delivery, Teamwork, New solutions and Skills development. A significant number of the target audience must be over 16, and preference will be given to projects which deliver learning to new audiences.

Eight awards will be given for up to £25,000 and two for up to £75,000 in two periods in the coming year. Funding is available for projects lasting a maximum of two years.

To apply, an application form is available online for completion by 17 November 2000. BT will then select projects from which to request further information, and ten projects will be invited to give a presentation to a judging panel in February next year. For the first award period of the year, projects must start no later than September 2001, and finish by the end of 2002. The winners will be announced on 2 July 2001.

Previous winners have included West Suffolk College's IT4U project to improve adult IT skills in a rural community, providing portable equipment with mobile communications will be provided to enable learning to take place within the community, using schools, pubs, clubs and village halls, and Wolverhampton College, for their Family IT Learning Centre for those who cannot travel to the college.