Funding Opportunity: Innovate UK Growth Catalyst – Investor Partnerships

Innovate UK is inviting UK-registered small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to apply for grant funding via the Growth Catalyst – Investor Partnerships (Round 2) competitors. This programme helps innovation tasks by combining public grant funding with aligned non-public funding from chosen investor companions.

Funding physique: Innovate UK
Eligibility: UK-registered SMEs
Funding kind: Grant funding alongside non-public funding
Competition opens: Wednesday, 10 December 2025
Application deadline: Tuesday, 3 February 2026 (11:00am UK time)

Applicants should be invited by an authorised investor accomplice and will need to have agreed their proposal with the investor earlier than submitting an application.

Who can apply

To be eligible, candidates should:

• Be a UK-registered micro, small, or medium-sized enterprise (SME)
• Carry out the mission work within the UK
• Intend to take advantage of the mission leads to or from the UK
• Be a single applicant (no consortium purposes)
• Be invited to apply by an Innovate UK investor accomplice
• Have mentioned and agreed the proposal with the investor accomplice previous to submission

Each SME could submit just one application on this funding spherical.

Eligible mission sorts and sizes

Projects should fall underneath one of many following analysis classes:

Feasibility research

• Total mission prices: £50,000 to £300,000
• Project length: 6 to 12 months

Industrial analysis

• Total mission prices: £100,000 to £1 million
• Project length: 6 to 24 months

Experimental growth

• Total mission prices: £250,000 to £2 million
• Project length: 12 to 24 months

Projects should begin on the primary day of a month and can’t start till the Innovate UK Grant Offer Letter has been authorised.

Funding particulars

• A minimal of £100 million has been allotted to this competitors (topic to ample high-quality purposes).
• Funding is supplied as a grant, masking a proportion of eligible mission prices.
• Grant funding is simply awarded if aligned non-public funding is secured at or above the required minimal degree.

Grant contribution charges

Feasibility research and industrial analysis:

• Up to 70% of eligible prices for micro or small organisations
• Up to 60% for medium-sized organisations
• Minimum aligned funding should be a minimum of equal to the grant quantity

Experimental growth:

• Up to 45% of eligible prices for micro or small organisations
• Up to 35% for medium-sized organisations
• Minimum aligned funding should be a minimum of twice the grant quantity

Projects can solely begin as soon as the aligned funding has been totally confirmed.

Subcontracting

• Subcontractors are permitted and could also be based mostly within the UK or abroad.
• Use of abroad subcontractors should be totally justified, with proof that appropriate UK subcontractors couldn’t be used.
• All subcontractor prices should be cheap, eligible, and proportionate to the mission.

Additional situations

• Projects should adjust to UK subsidy management laws and Innovate UK funding guidelines.
• Organisations in monetary issue aren’t eligible.
• Projects involving animals should adjust to UKRI steering on animal welfare and ethics.
• Innovate UK won’t fund tasks that breach UK sanctions laws.

How purposes are assessed

Funding choices are based mostly on three components:

1. Innovation – assessed by unbiased assessors
2. Additionality – the impression of the grant in accelerating innovation and leveraging funding
3. Traction – the chance that the aligned funding will full inside an inexpensive timeframe

Strong efficiency throughout all three standards is required to achieve success.

How to apply

Applications should be submitted via the Innovate UK application system. Applicants should both begin a brand new application or proceed an present one earlier than the deadline.

Full steering on eligibility, eligible prices, and application necessities is on the market within the competitors documentation.

Innovate UK has opened the Growth Catalyst – Investor Partnerships (Round 2) funding competitors for UK-registered SMEs. The programme affords grant funding alongside non-public funding to assist feasibility research, industrial analysis, and experimental growth tasks. Grants cowl a proportion of eligible prices and require aligned funding from an authorised investor accomplice. The competitors opens on 10 December 2025 and closes on 3 February 2026 at 11:00am (UK time).

For extra alternatives, click on right here.

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