NextGen Skills Academy
NextGen Skills Academy is a UK vocational education provider, founded in 2014, that co-designs games, animation, and VFX training curricula with major studios (Creative Assembly, Framestore, DNEG, ILM) and delivers them through a network of 14 further-education colleges across England, complemented by apprenticeships and free Skills Bootcamps.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersExeter, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What NextGen Skills Academy does
NextGen Skills Academy (legal entity: Next Gen Skills Ltd, registered in England and Wales, company number 10303292) is a UK vocational education provider founded in 2014 that develops and distributes training programmes for the games, animation, and visual effects (VFX) industries. Its core product is the AIM Qualifications Level 3 Diploma/Extended Diploma in Games, Animation and VFX Skills — a two-year full-time qualification co-authored in 2014 by leading studios including Sony, Microsoft, Ubisoft, Framestore, DNEG, and Centroid, and delivered through a network of 14 industry-recognised further-education 'Centres of Excellence' colleges across England. The curriculum teaches industry-standard software (Maya, Nuke, Blender, GameMaker Studio 2, Unreal Engine) and is complemented by higher-level apprenticeships (Junior Visual Effects Apprenticeship at Westminster Kingsway College's Soho hub; Junior Animator Apprenticeship), free government-funded Skills Bootcamps in Animation, Games, and Unreal Engine, and short courses delivered with The Prince's Trust and others. In March 2025 NextGen launched the RISE platform (nextgenriseplatform.com) as a digital learning hub for masterclasses, live streams, and bootcamp applications.
The company operates a hybrid revenue and funding model. Direct revenue comes from employer fees — a £250 one-time registration fee per cohort recruitment round and a £500 flat fee per apprentice hired — for the apprenticeship programme. The Level 3 Diploma and Skills Bootcamps are funded indirectly through the UK further-education funding system and the government's Skills Bootcamps initiative, with NextGen acting as the curriculum developer and industry-bridge rather than the direct funding recipient; eligible learners access bootcamps free of charge. Go-to-market is channel-partner-led: NextGen recruits apprentices centrally on behalf of studios, students apply through partner colleges or the RISE platform, and distribution relies on studio endorsements, college networks, alumni referrals, and partnerships with bodies such as ScreenSkills, AIM Qualifications, IfATE, BAFTA, and The Prince's Trust. The company employs approximately 19 people, is headquartered at its registered office in Exeter with apprenticeship training delivered in London, and reported 2022-23 baseline carbon emissions of 795.38 tCO2e with a Net Zero by 2050 commitment.
NextGen Skills Academy firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- NextGen Skills Academy
- Legal name
- Next Gen Skills Ltd
- Website
- https://nextgenskillsacademy.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- NextGen Skills Academy is a UK vocational education provider, founded in 2014, that co-designs games, animation, and VFX training curricula with major studios (Creative Assembly, Framestore, DNEG, ILM) and delivers them through a network of 14 further-education colleges across England, complemented by apprenticeships and free Skills Bootcamps.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
NextGen Skills Academy industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Creative Industry Vocational Education and Training
- NAICS
- Technical and Trade Schools (6115), Computer Training (61142)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Technical & Digital Skills Training (BPACANAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Advanced Project-Based Learning & Portfolio Mentoring (STEM/arts portfolios, maker projects) (EDANAKAI)
Keywords
Where NextGen Skills Academy is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Exeter
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
NextGen Skills Academy business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Apprenticeship Facilitation Fees: NextGen charges employers a one-time registration fee of £250 per cohort recruitment round and a flat fee of £500 per apprentice hired. Apprentices themselves are paid employees of the hiring studio. NextGen also facilitates government apprenticeship funding — for eligible employers (non-levy payers with apprentices aged 16–21, or 22–24 with EHC plans in small companies), training is fully government-funded; other non-levy employers contribute 5% of training costs.
- Government-Funded Training (via Colleges): The Level 3 vocational courses are funded through the UK further education funding system via partner colleges. Skills Bootcamps are government-funded. NextGen acts as the curriculum developer and industry bridge rather than the direct funding recipient.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Employer cohort registration |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Apprentice placement facilitation |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Skills Bootcamps for learners |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
NextGen Skills Academy product offering
Product offeringCore offering
NextGen Skills Academy is a UK vocational education provider that delivers industry co-designed training programmes in Games, Animation, and VFX through a national network of approved further education colleges and apprenticeship programmes. Its core products include the AIM Qualifications Level 3 Diploma/Extended Diploma, Level 4 Junior VFX and Junior Animator Apprenticeships, and government-funded Skills Bootcamps, supported by the NextGen RISE digital learning platform and direct studio partnerships.
Product overview
NextGen Skills Academy is a vocational education provider offering a portfolio of training programs in Games, Animation, and VFX. The core offering is the AIM Qualifications Level 3 Diploma/Extended Diploma in Games, Animation and VFX Skills—a two-year full-time course developed with leading creative studios. This is complemented by Level 4 apprenticeships (Junior VFX and Junior Animator), free Skills Bootcamps, and short courses delivered with partners like The Prince's Trust. The NextGen RISE platform serves as the digital learning hub providing access to masterclasses, live streams, and industry resources. Programs are delivered through a network of industry-recognized colleges across England and include significant real-world engagement through work experience placements, industry-set projects, game jams, and graduate showcases.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- NextGen RISE: A transformative learning platform bridging Education and Industry, offering skills bootcamps.
Products and services
- AIM Qualifications Level 3 Diploma/Extended Diploma in Games, Animation and VFX Skills A two-year full-time vocational qualification that teaches students the technical skills, software, and industry knowledge needed for careers in games, animation, and visual effects. Includes art, maths, coding, and vocational skills with mentorship from industry professionals, and sets students up for university, higher apprenticeships, or direct industry entry.
- Junior Visual Effects Apprenticeship A Level 4 Higher Level Apprenticeship with three specialisms (Junior VFX Artist 2D, Junior VFX Artist CG/3D, and Assistant Technical Director) that combines workplace employment with off-the-job training at Westminster Kingsway College's Soho hub. Apprentices are paid employees of the hiring studio while gaining structured industry training.
- Junior Animator Apprenticeship A trailblazer apprenticeship standard created by ScreenSkills and leading employers (Blue Zoo, Framestore, Aardman, DNEG, etc.) that trains apprentices to create animated assets through 2D Animation, Stop-Motion Animation, 3D Animation, or Interactive Media. Apprentices spend 80% of time with employers and 20% studying off-the-job.
- Skills Bootcamps (Animation, Games, and Unreal Engine) Free government-funded intensive training programmes in Animation, Games Development, and Unreal Engine, designed for rapid entry into creative industry careers. Includes partnerships with Aardman and A-Productions (3D Animation for West of England), Game Republic (North Yorkshire), and 3D Character Animation courses.
- NextGen RISE Platform A transformative digital learning platform that bridges education and industry by providing digital learning resources, industry masterclasses, live streams, and serving as the self-serve application portal for Skills Bootcamps.
Quantifiable outcome
- 46% of VFX apprenticeship positions filled by NextGen alumni across two recent recruitment rounds
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use NextGen Skills Academy
Customer profileNamed customers12 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
NextGen Skills Academy technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
NextGen Skills Academy partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
24 partnerships are on record, tiered secondary and core.
- mayamadasecondarymayamada, a London-based creative brand, collaborated with NextGen on a two-week remote work experience project at The Sheffield College. Level 4 and 5 students created game prototypes and animatics for mayamada's commercial IP, providing students with real industry experience while mayamada gained a venture into the video game space.
- Ocean GenerationsecondaryOcean Generation, an environmental charity focused on ocean conservation, partnered with Creative Assembly and NextGen for the 'Ocean Hack' work experience challenge in 2023. Students created games highlighting ocean sustainability, with Ocean Generation providing the environmental issue focus.
- Aardman AnimationssecondaryAardman Animations was an employer partner involved in creating the Junior Animator Apprenticeship Standard. They partnered with NextGen Futures and A-Productions to launch a 10-week Skills Bootcamp in 3D Animation for the West of England in December 2023.
- A-ProductionssecondaryA-Productions partnered with NextGen Futures and Aardman Animations to deliver a 10-week Skills Bootcamp in 3D Animation for the West of England.
- Northern Ireland ScreensecondaryNorthern Ireland Screen partnered with NextGen Skills Academy in August 2023 to enhance creative gaming education in Northern Ireland, expanding NextGen's geographic reach.
- Warner Bros. Discovery Games AcademysecondaryWarner Bros. Discovery launched its inaugural Games Academy in the UK in August 2022, with NextGen collaborating as a pathway provider into the programme.
- Game RepublicsecondaryGame Republic partnered with NextGen to deliver a Level Up Your Gaming Career programme in North Yorkshire in October 2023, expanding NextGen's regional footprint.
- BAFTA (Young Game Designers competition)secondaryNextGen announced a new collaboration with the BAFTA Young Game Designers competition in July 2022, connecting students to a prestigious industry competition.
- ScreenSkillscoreScreenSkills led the industry Trailblazer group that created the Junior Animator Apprenticeship Standard. NextGen and ScreenSkills co-hosted the Aspiring Women personal development programme for women in the games, animation and VFX industries. ScreenSkills Animation Skills Fund supported the 3Dami After-School 3D Animation Club.
- 4wardFuturessecondary4wardFutures is an educational charity that organised virtual work experience projects with NextGen students, including a Mars colonisation project and presentations to NASA scientists. Industry professionals from Creative Assembly, Union VFX, and Space Specialists provided coaching during these projects.
- The Prince's TrustsecondaryThe Prince's Trust partnered with NextGen to deliver 'Get Started in Games Design' short courses, providing a pathway for young people (particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds) to enter the creative industries. The programme includes networking, mentorship, and portfolio building.
- Into GamessecondaryInto Games ran the Side Quest initiative (May–September 2020), a UK-wide programme encouraging 13–19 year olds to build games during the COVID-19 pandemic, with NextGen listed as a supporting partner alongside UKIE, The National Videogame Museum, and Digital Skills Partnership.
- UKIE (The Association for UK Interactive Entertainment)secondaryUKIE is the industry trade body supporting the Side Quest initiative. NextGen is listed as a supporting partner of this programme, which aimed to get 100,000 young people building their first video game.
- Creative AssemblycoreCreative Assembly is a founding industry partner and member of the NextGen Employer Steering Group. They co-design curriculum, deliver masterclasses, set project briefs for students, judge competitions (NextGen Jam, Ocean Hack Challenge), mentor students, and have donated over £30,000 in laptops to NextGen students. Their Legacy Project education programme actively collaborates with NextGen on remote work experience and industry engagement.
- FramestorecoreFramestore is a founding industry partner and member of the NextGen Employer Steering Group. They participated in authoring the AIM Level 3 qualification and the Junior Animator Apprenticeship Standard. Framestore hosts apprentices and has been involved in the Aspiring Women programme and Diversity Access programmes.
- Blue Zoo Animation StudiocoreBlue Zoo is a key industry partner involved in creating the Junior Animator Apprenticeship Standard. They have hosted apprentice placements and collaborated on virtual animation studio bootcamps with NextGen. Blue Zoo also judged the NextGen Jam 2020.
- Industrial Light & Magic (ILM)coreILM is a leading industry partner supporting NextGen. They have hosted remote work experience placements for NextGen students and contribute to the industry-education bridge through their Oscar-winning studio's outreach programmes.
- DNEGcoreDNEG participated in creating the Junior Animator Apprenticeship Standard and hosts apprentice placements. DNEG staff (Liz Mitchell as CG Supervisor, Laraib Atta as Digital Compositor) have participated in the Aspiring Women programme and serve as mentors and role models for NextGen students.
- Playground GamessecondaryPlayground Games is an industry partner that has provided prizes for NextGen student competitions (NextGen Jam 2019). They are part of the broader industry network supporting NextGen's curriculum and student outcomes.
- Centroid (3D Motion Capture)secondaryCentroid participated in the original industry collaboration that created the AIM Level 3 qualification alongside other leading studios (2014).
- UbisoftsecondaryUbisoft EMEA partnered with NextGen and the University of Sunderland to develop the first Level 4 Digital Community Manager Apprenticeship Standard, which was shortlisted for a TIGA Games Industry Award 2020.
- AIM Qualifications and Assessment GroupcoreAIM Qualifications was selected by the NextGen Employer Steering Group as the awarding organisation to develop the Level 3 Extended Diploma in Games, Animation and VFX Skills. AIM provides the regulatory and accreditation framework for NextGen's core qualification.
- Westminster Kingsway CollegecoreWestminster Kingsway College is the primary training provider for NextGen's Junior Visual Effects Apprenticeship programme. Their newly refurbished hub in Soho, London, delivers the 'off-the-job' training component. They have trained multiple cohorts of VFX apprentices and collaborate with studios to determine training schedules.
- Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE)coreIfATE is the government body overseeing apprenticeship standards. The Junior Visual Effects Apprenticeship Standard and Junior Animator Apprenticeship Standard were developed through consultation with industry and IfATE, which approved and published the standards.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
NextGen Skills Academy competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- ScreenSkills: ScreenSkills is the UK sector skills body for the screen industries and co-developed the Junior Animator Apprenticeship Standard with NextGen. They are direct strategic peers in shaping UK creative-industry apprenticeship and workforce development policy.
- SAE Institute: SAE Institute is an international creative media college offering courses in audio, film, animation, games and web. It is a direct peer in the vocational creative-industry training segment, including government-funded further education pathways in the UK.
- National Film and Television School (NFTS): NFTS is the UK's national centre for postgraduate film, television and games training. It sits at the higher end of the same creative-industry talent pipeline that NextGen feeds into and overlaps in employer relations across VFX, animation and games studios.
- Escape Studios: Escape Studios is a UK-based VFX, animation and games training provider offering short courses, degrees and postgraduate programmes with strong industry studio links. It competes directly with NextGen for the same pool of UK creative-industry trainees and employer placement relationships.
- Access Creative College: Access Creative College is a UK further-education college network offering creative and technical courses (games, media, music) to 16+ learners. It mirrors NextGen's college-network distribution model and competes for the same Level 3 vocational cohort.
- Into Games: Into Games is a UK games-industry education non-profit delivering events, mentoring and pathways for young people into games careers. It overlaps with NextGen's games pathway offering and shares employer partners and end beneficiaries.
Others
- Aardman Animations: Aardman is a senior UK animation studio that co-developed the Junior Animator Apprenticeship Standard with NextGen and co-runs a 3D Animation Skills Bootcamp in the West of England. It is primarily an employer partner rather than a direct training competitor, but its academy activities overlap with NextGen's scope.
- The Prince's Trust: The Prince's Trust is a UK youth charity that partners with NextGen to deliver 'Get Started in Games Design' short courses for disadvantaged young people. It is an adjacent enabling partner that funnels NextGen's target demographic into creative-industry routes.
Regional players
- CG Spectrum: CG Spectrum is an online VFX, animation and games training provider with strong studio mentor networks. It is a comparable technical training operator but is based outside the UK and does not currently compete in the England further-education market that NextGen dominates.
Broad incumbents
- Falmouth University (Launchpad / Games Academy): Falmouth University operates a portfolio of creative-industry undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, including games and animation. As a broader higher-education incumbent, it serves the same target employers and competes for the same Level 3 leavers, though through degree rather than vocational pathways.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
NextGen Skills Academy social profiles
Digital presenceNextGen Skills Academy financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
NextGen Skills Academy leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
NextGen Skills Academy funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
NextGen Skills Academy M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about NextGen Skills Academy
What does NextGen Skills Academy do?
NextGen Skills Academy is a UK vocational education provider that delivers industry co-designed training programmes in Games, Animation, and VFX through a national network of approved further education colleges and apprenticeship programmes. Its core products include the AIM Qualifications Level 3 Diploma/Extended Diploma, Level 4 Junior VFX and Junior Animator Apprenticeships, and government-funded Skills Bootcamps, supported by the NextGen RISE digital learning platform and direct studio partnerships.
Is NextGen Skills Academy a public or private company?
NextGen Skills Academy is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was NextGen Skills Academy founded?
NextGen Skills Academy was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is NextGen Skills Academy based?
NextGen Skills Academy is headquartered in Exeter, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does NextGen Skills Academy make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Apprenticeship Facilitation Fees are the primary driver. The others are government-Funded Training (via Colleges).
Who are NextGen Skills Academy's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are ScreenSkills, SAE Institute, National Film and Television School (NFTS), Escape Studios, Access Creative College and Into Games. Others are Aardman Animations and The Prince's Trust. CG Spectrum is listed as a regional player. Falmouth University (Launchpad / Games Academy) is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does NextGen Skills Academy have an API?
No public API is recorded for NextGen Skills Academy.
What industry is NextGen Skills Academy in?
NextGen Skills Academy's product category is Creative Industry Vocational Education and Training. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACANAB, Technical & Digital Skills Training, with a secondary code of EDANAKAI, Advanced Project-Based Learning & Portfolio Mentoring (STEM/arts portfolios, maker projects). Its NAICS code is 6115 and its SIC code is 8200.