National Grid for Learning

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Not to be confused with Learning Grid.


The National Grid for Learning (NGfL) was a United Kingdom Government-funded gateway to educational resources on the Internet. It featured many individually selected links to resources and materials deemed to be of high quality.

The NGfL portal was launched in November 1998, as the portal for the DfES National Grid for Learning strategy. This programme aimed to help learners and educators in the United Kingdom benefit from information and communications technology (ICT). It was one of several new programmes initiated by the new labour government which took office in May 1997 and had a linked budget of earmarked funds to be spent on schools internet connections and ICT. The portal was funded and managed by the Government's lead agency for ICT in education, Becta (British Educational Communications and Technology Agency).

On 13 April 2006, Becta closed the National Grid for Learning portal, stating that it was improving its offer to teachers by rationalising the number of different services it provides for schools and teaching staff. According to the agency, this is being achieved by integrating valued components of the NGfL into its existing services. However the concept lives on in regions of the UK where particular groups have chosen to collaborate in offering services to schools. The North West Learning Grid for example describes itself as a consortium of nineteen local education authorities working in partnership to improve the process and management of learning using the latest information and communication technologies. [1]. Similarly, the National Grid for Learning Cymru is still open and in use.

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Regional Broadband Consortium