Who we are
Inspire every child to create their best digital future
The Micro:bit Educational Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation founded in the UK in 2016, with the aim of inspiring every child to create their best digital future.
We do this by:
- developing hardware and software that inspires young people to get excited about technology and the opportunities it presents for them
- creating free, user-friendly educational resources to support teachers in delivering engaging and creative lessons
- working with like-minded partners to deliver high-impact educational programmes across the globe.
Our history
The micro:bit was originally created by the BBC in collaboration with 29 other leaders in business and academia as part of the BBC’s Make It Digital initiative. This major UK-wide project launched in 2014 with a focus on creating the next generation of digital innovators.
From early 2016, up to 1 million micro:bits were distributed to Year 7 students (or equivalent, aged 11-12), non-formal education settings and libraries across the UK in a project led by BBC Education. The response was overwhelmingly positive and the impact continues to this day.
The Micro:bit Educational Foundation was created from the original BBC project in October 2016. The Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation responsible for maximising opportunities for students around the world to learn with the micro:bit.
You can read more about the origins of the micro:bit and milestones in our story here.
Our mission
We enable and inspire all children to participate in the digital world, with particular focus on girls and those from disadvantaged groups
We make micro:bit the easiest and most effective learning tool for digital skills and creativity
We work in collaboration with educators to create and curate exceptional curriculum materials, training programmes and resources
We build and support communities of educators and partners to remove the barriers to learning digital skills
Our values
These are the values that inform everything we do. They enable us, as a small organisation, to do amazing things and have more impact by creating partnerships all over the world:
Trust
Partnership
Simplicity
Passion
Our partners
Founding Partners
We are grateful for the long-standing support of our Founding Partners, who have been with us since the very early days and continue to play an integral role in our work.
Arm
BBC
British Council
IET
Lancaster University
Microsoft
Nominet
Partners
With thanks to the following organisations who have made major contributions to our work:
Infosys Foundation USA
Lenovo Foundation
Nordic Semiconductor
World's Largest Lesson
Community Partners
We work in close collaboration with Community Partners who deliver programmes focused on digital learning and creativity internationally. These include:
Global
Python Software Foundation
Asia & Pacific
Centum Charitas Foundation
Infocomm Media Development Authority
MDEC
Smilegate Foundation
Tencent
code.org.ja
Europe
CS Inc
Camara Education Ireland
Central South Consortium / Consortiwm Canolbarth y De
Computing At School (CAS)
DR
Digital Xtra Fund
EU Code Week / European Schoolnet
Education Scotland (DigiLearn Scot)
Girl Guiding Northwest
IRIM
Kompiuteriukų Fondas
Leeds Museums, Galleries and Libraries
Libraries NI
Microsoft Ireland (DreamSpace)
National Centre for Computing Education (NCCE)
Scottish Libraries Information Council (SLIC)
Scouts
Slovak Python User Group
Teknisk Museum
Ulster University
North America
AVID
BootUp PD
Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA)
Georgia Tech College of Computing
GirlStart
Kids Code Jeunesse
Silicon Valley Education Foundation
Virginia Tech Innovation Campus
Latin America
Plan Ceibal
Programa Inova Educação - Secretary of Education of São Paulo State
Scratch al Sur
Sesi, São Paulo
Board
Stephen Pattison
Stephen has been the Foundation's Chairman since 2017, but has been involved in the micro:bit project since its early days as VP Public Affairs at Arm. Stephen's varied career has included him working as a British diplomat in the UK and overseas, Head of International Business Development for Dyson, and CEO of the International Chamber of Commerce (UK).
Dr Ambily Banerjee
Ambily is a Director in Global Regulatory Affairs for GSK and joined the Foundation board in 2021. Following her PhD in Molecular Biology, Ambily worked in academia before moving to the pharmaceutical industry in 2007. She is an active advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion, and is a board member for Slough Council for Voluntary Services.
Cerys Griffiths
Cerys jointly led the original BBC micro:bit project and has been a board member since 2018. A former journalist and editor, Cerys currently works as Head of Content Production for BBC Education. She also has overall editorial responsibility for Tiny Happy People, the BBC’s early years language and communication initiative.
Adam Leach
Adam is the Chief Information Officer at Nominet and has been a Foundation board member since 2016. Adam has a background in software engineering and was the technical lead for the world’s first smartphone, the Nokia Communicator. He has previously worked for Ovum and Vodafone, where he defined its software strategy for smartphones.
Michelle Richmond
Michelle is the Director of IET's Membership & Professional Development Directorate and has been a Foundation board member since 2016. Having previously worked as Chartered Engineer, Michelle was "Young Woman Engineer of the Year" in 1990 and awarded an MBE for services to engineering in 2019.
Gareth Stockdale
Gareth has been a board director since 2016 and was appointed CEO at the Micro:bit Educational Foundation in January 2018. As Head of Operations for BBC Education, Gareth was the joint project lead for the micro:bit project and led the process which culminated in the formation of the Micro:bit Educational Foundation. Prior to this, Gareth worked for Twofour, using digital media to enhance education and training.
Meet the team
CEO
CTO
Chief of Learning
Operations Director
Educational Content Manager
Head of Fundraising
Head of Asia
Head of Partnerships EMEA
Device Software Lead
Community Lead – Japan
Head of Partnerships, North America
Web Technology Lead
Producer
Front End Developer
Head of Global Channels
Event Coordinator
Project Manager
Software Engineer
Administrator
Latin America (Brazil)
Communities Officer
Education Production Assistant
Project Manager
Research Associate, Embedded software engineer
Tech Support Engineer
Work for us
We are a small but ambitious team who are passionate about education and the part technology can play in children's learning.
We're also a global team, many of us work remotely and we collaborate online with colleagues located across many time zones. The Foundation is an incredibly busy but rewarding place to work.
Please read our Privacy policy and our Hiring policy before applying.
Contact us
Support and feedback
The best way to contact us to get help using your micro:bit device is by searching our support site or raising a support ticket - these are answered by real human beings in our team who have a vast amount of knowledge and experience of the micro:bit.
General enquiries and press
Email us at info@microbit.org
Registered address
Please note that as an organisation with team members working remotely all over the globe, we encourage contact by email to discuss any delivery options.
Micro:bit Educational Foundation
12 New Fetter Lane
London, EC4A 1JP
United Kingdom