The current state of the long-winded pandemic has meant many of us have been stuck indoors in working from in front of our computer screens. If you’re not working, surely there could be something to keep yourself busy.
Learning to code is a great option now, because the having a coding skill sets you apart from competitors and also gives you knowledge for your desired career.
The internet has been used more consistently than ever before. A report from Ofcom found that UK adults spent an average of three hours and 47 minutes surfing the internet daily in 2020.
So if you’re someone that’s looking to learn without the hassle of leaving your home, studying online would be your best bet.
We list some of the best courses and bootcamps in the UK for those looking to make the leap: from paid or free options to day courses or weekly programmes.
Online vs classroom courses
Online courses are more relevant now because of the rise of advanced technologies. Alongside this, is the desire for quick and easy accessibility, which online learning provides.
They are also relatively cheaper than classroom-based courses. However, there are also some potential drawbacks to consider.
Online learning requires more self-motivation and taking responsibility of managing your learning. For those that may struggle with this, a face-to-face class could be the better option. They’re more intense, but you are given more on-hand support and it’s likely you’ll achieve more in a tighter time scale.
We’ve provided a mix of online and class-based courses for you to choose from.
Code First Girls
Code First Girls was founded in 2012 by Alice Bentinck and Matthew Clifford. The non-profit offers free, part-time coding courses for female and non-binary identifying young individuals across the UK and Ireland.
The coding school has already taught more than 20,000 women across the UK to code for free and delivered over £10 million worth of free coding courses.
Breaking down these potential entry barriers will not only improve how the courses are delivered, but it will also ensure they are more accessible to everyone who wishes to participate.
To apply for a free Code First Girls community course, you must identify as female or non-binary and be aged between 18-23, or aged 18+ and currently studying, or aged 18+ and completed your studies in the past 2 years.
- How long: 2 hours a week for eight weeks
- Cost: Free if you fit the above criteria
- Where: Various classroom-based locations and universities across the country
- Find out more
The Knowledge Academy
The Knowledge Academy offers different types of course, from advanced technology to IT security.
Its coding courses include the likes of C Programming to Python, and a range of others. The length and cost of the courses vary, depending on the course you choose. This includes the option of online or classroom-based learning.
- How long: 16hours online or 1 week class-based
- Cost: Varies per course
- Where: London, Bristol, Leeds and more across UK
- Find out more
Code Your Future
Code Your Future is a non-profit, volunteer-led organisation which aims to help refugees, asylum seekers, single parents, those from low income backgrounds and the disadvantaged learn to code and open up their future job prospects. Since its inception in 2016, the programme has already supported people from over 30 different nationalities.
It was founded by Venezuelan engineer, Germán Bencci, who moved to the UK a decade ago. In 2019, he explained the motivation behind setting up the non-profit to us, stating that the technology industry tends to favour the privileged and he wanted to help those who often get left behind by society.
Unlike other courses, Code Your Future graduates aren’t expected to contribute financially back into the programme after gaining full time employment and all financial burdens are covered for the entire length of the course.
No previous coding experience is necessary. The only requirements for gaining a place on the course are an asylum seeker or a refugee, you live below the local household poverty line, you have been diagnosed with a mental or physical disability or you face significant difficulties in getting the education you need to find employment.
- How long: 1 month of fundamentals course, then eight months on a part-time basis
- Cost: Free if you fit the above criteria
- Where: London, Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow, Rome and Medellín
- Find out more
Le Wagon
Ranked among the best coding schools in the world, Le Wagon is an intensive bootcamp designed to get students building the very best products. The course covers back-end programming languages such as SQL and Ruby, as well as front end techniques such as CSS grid and JavaScript.
- How long: 9 weeks to be completed full-time over nine weeks or part-time over 24 weeks
- Where: London and other major cities across Europe, Asia Pacific, the Americas and the Middle East
- Cost: Available during application process
- Find out more
iO Academy
This immersive bootcamp (formerly called Mayden Academy) aims to get novice coders ready to land their first development job. It not only teaches the tech skills required to code but also offers assistance with the job search by introducing course alumni to local businesses hiring devs.
iO Academy was named as one of the top ten coding bootcamps in the world by SwitchUp in 2020.
- How long: 16 weeks
- Cost: £11,000
- Where: Bath, Sheffield and Online
- Find out more
Makers Academy
There are two main learning options at the Makers Academy: Makers Apprenticeships and Makers Academy. The former takes just over a year to complete while the latter can be completed in 12 weeks.
- How long: 12 weeks (Full Time)
- Where: London
- Find out more
General Assembly
General Assembly offers training and upskilling in tech, data, design and business and has 15 campuses around the globe. Their immersive development courses cover Android, iOS and Software Engineering.
- How long: 12 weeks part-time and 24 weeks full-time, with a choice of evening & weekend courses.
- Cost: Free evening and 1-week courses & full length courses from £9,000
- Where: London, Edinburgh and Manchester plus various cities across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Online course options are also available
- Find out more
Codecademy
Codecademy promotes a ‘learn by doing’ mantra meaning no matter your experience level, you’ll be coding from the off. The web development course covers HTML, CSS and JavaScript. It also provides a range of coding foundation courses for beginners, along with multiple courses from data science to machine learning.
- How long: You go at your own pace – weeks or months! You can choose from as a little as one lesson to over 100
- Cost: Free to Pro pricing from £15.99 for unlimited access to courses.
- Where: Online only
- Find out more
CodeClan
There are a range of course options at Scotland-based, CodeClan from professional software development to full-stack. The former takes you through the fundamentals of programming, front and back end development and the best industry tools and processes.
- How long: 1-3 day courses plus 8, 16 and 20 week courses
- Cost: £450 for 3-day course, £600 evening course & up to £6,650 for full length courses
- Where: Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness
- Find out more
City University of London
At City University of London there are a range of different short courses in computing including introductions to different programming languages.
- How long: 10 to 20 weekly classes
- Cost: Prices vary from £430
- Where: London, City University
- Find out more