Impact Report 2024/25: Reflections from Natalie Moore, CEO of Apps for Good

Time is flying by faster than ever, and while we regularly share our impact, it has been a full year since we last brought the whole story together. No matter how tough things are in our wider operating environment (particularly when it comes to fundraising), as I look back on everything we've accomplished, it's clear what a truly incredible year it has been. While the world around us changes rapidly, I continue to feel proud of everything we have achieved with the support of our funders, partners, volunteers, teachers, students, and dedicated team and trustees.

As you’ll know, our vision at Apps for Good is a world where every young person has the skills to shape their future. We do this by providing free tech innovation courses to schools and connecting them with Industry Volunteers along the way. It’s vital for us to continuously learn from both the education sector and tech industry, so that we can understand what’s needed and add our support in the right place.

Student disengagement is a big problem - and it’s hitting our less advantaged learners the hardest. The Pearson School Report 2025, found 69% of secondary educators expect disengagement to be a major barrier to learning in the next six months. Worryingly, this isn’t a new trend. Year after year, schools with higher numbers of students eligible for free school meals report the steepest drops in motivation and participation.

These early cracks in engagement can grow into lasting disengagement and inequality. With the upcoming Curriculum Review and the Shadow Curriculum & Assessment Review (sCAR), there is a clear call for change. The youth-led reform paper, sCAR, demonstrates a strong desire to create an education system that truly reflects the needs and potential of all young people. We couldn’t agree more!

sCAR recommends that all students should leave formal education with a reasonable understanding of one of the greatest challenges of our time – the climate and nature crises – as well as the skills to take meaningful action to address these challenges within their personal and working lives. It’s refreshing to hear directly from young people that social and climate action is important to them and that they want the skills to take action - something our courses aim to deliver.

I recently read Dan Fitzpatrick’s article in Forbes where he discusses 'Why Agency Is The New Literacy'. He refers to the OECD’s Future of Education and Skills 2030 framework, ‘which positions student agency at the core of learning, calling for co-agency, where students, teachers and communities co-create solutions to challenges’. I nodded along in agreement! It’s a fascinating read - one which considers AI as a ‘teammate’ and not a ‘tool’, perspectives which support the Apps for Good approach to equip young people with the skills and agency to use technology and AI to solve problems they care about. I was struck by a quote from Dr Saba Quidwai, who said, “we are entering an age where agency, the ability to act, influence, and create, will matter as much as literacy or numeracy once did.”

Industry has its concerns about skills, too. According to the 2025 Tech Nation report, 1 in 3 UK tech founders say the availability of top talent is their biggest barrier to growth.

We’re working hard to change this picture.

After taking part in our courses, it’s our goal that more young people, especially girls and others from underrepresented backgrounds, will go on to pursue technology careers and/or use technology to help solve societal problems. I was so excited to learn that two of our long-term delivering schools, Putteridge High School and Cedars Upper Schools, have seen a notable uptake in students (particularly girls) choosing to continue studying computing subjects. We’ve played a role in that change. Simon James, Head of Computing at Putteridge High School, told us they now have over one third of girls taking computing courses in Key Stage 4, compared to just 6% five years ago.

Insights like these are incredibly exciting for Apps for Good, and this longer-term impact is a particular focus of this year’s report. We’re not just looking at the 2024/25 academic year, but throwing it back to 2010 as we celebrate our 15th anniversary. This autumn, we will be sharing 15 stories about individuals from the Apps for Good community. As part of this, we caught up with young people, now young adults, to see what happened next, and if and how Apps for Good influenced their journey. It has been an absolute pleasure for me to join many of these interviews, and it’s been so reassuring to see our Theory of Change come to life, truly demonstrating the long-term impact of our courses.

Reflecting on our 2024/25 delivery, I’m proud to say that our courses have again reached over 30,000 young people across the UK, with both students and teachers reporting a positive impact on skills, knowledge and future aspirations. You’ll find more stories, insights and outcomes in the rest of our impact report. Getting feedback from teachers and students is critical to us - not only in understanding our impact, but also for our own learning and improvement. We begin this academic year with some updates to our course content, all based on feedback from our community of teachers and students.

This year was one of remarkable progress and recognition for Apps for Good. Our Innovate for Climate Change course was a finalist for the MAT Awards, and our App for Social Action course was recognised as a finalist for a Teach Secondary, TeachCo Resource Award. We partnered with Chiltern Learning Trust to hold our Climate Change & Digital Innovation Summit 3.0, and our Senior Education Manager, Jodie, was nominated for a We Are The City Rising Star Award. We were also proud to have our courses accredited by the BSA CREST Awards. We launched a powerful new App for Social Action film and delivered our first-ever Career Series.

In September, Computer Weekly announced its 2025 longlist for the Most Influential Women in Tech. I’m honoured to be included alongside so many inspiring role models, showing young people from all backgrounds that they have a place in a diverse and thriving technology sector.

With the world changing faster than ever, Apps for Good is focused on what’s next, embracing AI and preparing students for an uncertain future. Collaboration will be key, so this report is both a look back and an invitation to join us in building a more equitable, innovative education system.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to our mission this year – your passion and commitment drive our success. Together, we’re not just teaching about technology; we’re empowering young people to become the problem-solvers, innovators, and leaders of tomorrow. Most of all, thank you to the students who inspire us every day with their creativity and dedication to making a positive difference.

Please dive into our Impact Journey and discover the positive impact we’ve had on young people in 2024/25.