Following a recent UK Government announcement of a pilot scheme called TechExpert, part of the national Skills Programme TechFirst, the CDT expects to offer an enhanced stipend for Home fees students (as defined by UKRI), who are starting in September 2026. This enhanced stipend will provide an additional £10,000 per year on top of the standard UKRI stipend rate (currently £20,780 for 2025/26) for the four years of the studentship (six years for part time).

As part of this pilot, students receiving the enhanced stipend will be expected to participate in:

• Mandatory additional TechExpert widening participation activities to inspire the next generation
• Virtual and potentially in-person TechExpert cohort networking events
• Broader engagement with the TechFirst programme 

All home fee status applicants for our September 2026 cohort will be automatically eligible for this funding (full time, or part time pro-rata). Students funded through this pilot scheme will still recieve the other benefits of our CDT students outlined on this page.

Final confirmation of this pilot scheme is expected from the Government in January 2026. Currently, we have limited details beyond these above, but we will be updating this webpage when more information is available.

Impact of this pilot scheme on non-eligible students

Our CDT is very supportive of the underlying motivation of the TechExpert funding, which is seeking to address the low levels of PhD student stipends in the UK especially when compared to most countries in Europe and North America. However, we are observant and concerned about the impacts of the pilot on non-eligible students – students in earlier cohorts on the CDT, and Overseas fees students joining the September 2026 cohort.

To be transparent about the rationale for our CDT choosing to participate in the TechExpert pilot, and to also outline our concerns about this, we have published a position statement on the following page: https://www.responsiblenlp.org/techexpert-funding-for-home-fees/our-posistion-on-techexpert-funding/