Team CodeBase is heartbroken for our neighbours, CodeClan. Over the past eight years the students and staff that have gone through those doors have become part of our community, and have become friends, co-founders, and colleagues. We will miss them dearly, and we are doing everything in our power to help students and trainers moving forward.
There are lots of questions being asked about what has happened, why it happened, and what will happen next for all involved and for the wider community and ecosystem. We’ve shared Mark Logan’s comments about the unfolding situation here, and we’ve summarised the key pieces of information below. If you’ve got any questions about how CodeBase is helping, either as an affected student or staff member, or as someone who’d like to help, please get in touch here.
What happens to students?
For the courses that can be delivered, affected students will be able to complete their courses, and in cases where a course cannot be delivered,we will work with the affected students to make alternative arrangements. This activity will be funded by the Scottish Government, with CodeBase also bearing costs. Please use this contact form to tell us your needs and share your details so we can contact you about continuing your course, as a student or as a trainer.
What happens to staff?
Affected CodeClan trainers will be offered the option to deliver remaining cohort coursework, fully paid, if they so wish. They will be contacted from next week by Team CodeBase to go through the options. For non-training staff affected, we will try to do what we can to help and support, for now, we invite you to review our open roles and open roles in the community.
Where will the remainder of the coursework be delivered?
CodeBase’s Techscaler Hubs will host space and support facilitation of course delivery.
Why couldn’t it have been saved?
As CodeClan is a private company we don’t know the specific details of everything, but we’ve been told that in spite of exhaustive efforts, and every available option and avenue being explored, CodeClan couldn't be rescued with public funding due to strict legal constraints and rules.
What will happen next with CodeClan?
The appointed liquidators have accepted a bid from CodeBase for all CodeClan assets, following an extensive due diligence process. Once the needs of students and staff are addressed, we will look at a cross-ecosystem effort to rebuild a sustainable and suitable mechanism that serves the strategic tech talent pipeline needs outlined in the Scottish Technology Ecosystem Review (STER). This will involve gathering evidence, feedback, and input from across the ecosystem to best understand what is needed for prospective students, employers, and support organisations. We are committed to rebuilding a solution for the gap left in the ecosystem, as a collective, but we are prioritising the support for students and staff in the first instance.
What about the other support that has been put forward?
The way that the community has kicked into action and wrapped its arms around the students and staff has been truly amazing. It’s tough times like this that bring out the very best in folk, and shows how special and impactful we are as a collective. Mark Logan has personally reached out to the organiser of the crowdfunding campaign, and Alistair Forbes of Scottish Tech Army is speaking to the individuals and organisations who have publicly put forward offers of support. We’re all on the same page about helping students and staff and we will work with everyone who has already offered, or who would like to offer support. We are truly greater than the sum of our parts.
What happens next?
As a startup community, we understand that failures are a part of the entrepreneurial journey. It's in how we respond, learn, and rebuild that we define our resilience. While the CodeClan we knew has come to an end, the need it addressed remains and so Scotland must re-establish that channel. We are committed to collectively charting a new path forward, one that continues to address the critical demand for tech talent and supports the growth of our startup ecosystem.
This past week has been a difficult one for our community and particularly for our friends and colleagues who made CodeClan the organisation that it was. But it’s been a week that has also revealed the collective energy and passion that we have for our ecosystem. I hope we can channel this spirit in the coming weeks to support staff and students, and to embark on a strategic conversation about what we do next.
Supporting CodeClan Students and Staff
Please use this form to get in touch with Team CodeBase about support for students and staff affected by CodeClan's closure.
