12th Nov 2025: The Jon Egging Trust (JET) is delighted to announce the expansion of its partnership with the RAF Museum thanks to a significant funding boost which was celebrated at the Museum’s Midlands site today.
JET CEO, Dr Alex Brown, was joined by RAF Museum Midlands Head of Learning and Engagement, Julie Brierley and local JET students from Haberdashers’ Abraham Darby to celebrate the new partnership. The funding will enable the expansion of JET’s flagship Blue Skies support programme in the region over the next four years. Up to 270 local students per year will progress through the three-year programme which enables students to build key teamwork and leadership skills, and gain access to inspiring workplaces linked to the world of STEM and aerospace, including RAF Museum Midlands.
This partnership funding will enable JET to deliver over 26,000 student hours of inspirational learning by 2028, in collaboration with the RAF Museum Midlands.
Dr Alex Brown said: “I was incredibly proud to attend a Blue Skies session here at RAF Museum Midlands today. The funding will support hundreds of students from within our local communities to build the skills, self-belief and aspirations needed to fulfil their potential in school and beyond into employment. RAF Museum Midlands provides a rich learning environment for our students, and we’re hugely grateful for this significant funding and delivery support from the Museum team.”
Julie Brierley, Head of Learning and Engagement at RAF Museum Midlands added: “We are delighted to award Jon Egging Trust funding to support learning experiences across the Midlands through their Blue Skies programme. Through this partnership we are able to reach young people at risk of disengaging from education and help them to discover new pathways. The inspiring STEM and aerospace experiences that Blue Skies offers, have a meaningful impact on the lives of young people who may not otherwise have access to such enriching opportunities.”
Funding for the Blue Skies programme stems from the Museum’s outreach initiative to engage a wider audience as part of its Inspiring Everyone: RAF Museum Midlands Development Programme, made possible with support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. This multimillion-pound site transformation will deliver a new exhibition, Learning Centre, Collections Hub, and enhanced green spaces. It also includes an extensive outreach programme designed to reach communities across the Midlands who may not have previously engaged with the Museum, inspiring them to connect with the RAF story.
This new partnership will create lifechanging opportunities for students with activities delivered via JET’s structured three-year Blue Skies syllabus to include skills workshops, employability and goal-setting sessions, and workplace visits which explore teamwork and leadership through the prism of aviation, engineering and space.