Innovate UK Smart Grants: January 2023

Deadline: 26-Apr-23

UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £25 million for game-changing and commercially viable R&D innovations that can significantly impact the UK economy. This funding is from Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation.

The Innovate UK Smart grant funds a cross-sector portfolio to support SMEs and their partners to develop the best game changing and word-leading projects. It offers funding where other opportunities are not available or appropriate, and where timing is key to ensure swift and successful commercialisation post-project completion.

To be in scope your proposal must demonstrate:

• A game-changing, innovative, and disruptive idea that will lead to new products, processes or services
• An idea that is significantly ahead of others in the field, set for rapid commercialisation
• Clear potential to positively impact the UK’s position, productivity and competitiveness within the global economy
• A clear, evidence-based business plan to deliver significant economic impact, return on investment (ROI) and growth through commercialisation, as soon as possible after project completion
• Why Smart funding is the right potential funding for your project, and the journey you have already been on to reach the point of application
• A team with the necessary skills and expertise to deliver the project successfully and on time, and to achieve rapid commercialisation
• Awareness of all the main risks the project will face with realistic management, mitigation and impact minimisation plans for each risk
• Sound, practical financial plans and timelines that represent good value for money, including the funding of post-project activities.

Specific Themes

• Your project must focus on:
  • Taking customer and user needs into account to deliver more desirable and useful solutions
  • Identifying who is ready to buy your innovation
  • Being developed, planned and resourced beyond the end of the Innovate UK funded project, taking into account the focus of any project partners and their existing commitments
  • Fitting with and complementing your ongoing business planning and development, product offerings and organisational structure to maximise chances of success.

Funding Information

• Projects of 6 to 18 months must have total eligible project costs between £100,000 and £500,000 and can be single or collaborative. 19 to 36 month projects must have total eligible project costs between £100,000 and £2 million and must be collaborative.

Eligibility Criteria

• Your project must:
  • Start by 1 October 2023
  • End by 30 September 2026
  • Include at least one micro, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) as the lead or a collaborative grant claiming partner
  • Follow specific rules dependent on its duration
  • Carry out all of its project work in the UK
  • Intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
• Lead Organisation
  • To lead a project your organisation must:
    • Be a UK registered SME if you want to work alone
    • Be a UK registered business of any size or a research and technology organisation (RTO) if collaborative
    • Include at least one grant claiming SME if you are a large business or RTO and wish to collaborate with other UK registered businesses, research organisations, academic organisations, public sector organisations or charities
    • Claim grant funding
• Project team
  • To collaborate with the lead, your organisation must be one of the following UK registered:
    • Business of any size
    • Academic institution
    • Charity
    • Not for profit
    • Public sector organisation
    • Research and technology organisation (RTO).

For more information, visit Innovate UK.