Funding competition Cyber Local

UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £1.3 million targeting cyber skills and innovation for the growth of the cyber security sector. This funding is from the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

This competition is now closed.

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Competition sections

Description

Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, will work with Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) to invest up to £1.3 million in innovation projects.

The aim of this competition is to develop impactful regional activities and events that focus on supporting the growth of the cyber security sector and the development of cyber security skills.

These will be to resolve geographical disparities in the development and growth of the cyber security sector and to reduce the skills gap in the sector.

Your proposal must:

  • be delivered in one of the seven specified areas
  • demonstrate clear impact in the cyber security sector of the area through the development of strong and innovative cyber security ecosystems or increasing opportunities for activities to reduce the skills gap in the sector

The seven specified areas are:

  • Northern Ireland
  • North-West England
  • South-West England
  • Yorkshire & Humber
  • Northeast England
  • East Midlands
  • West Midlands

For further information on these specific areas please see the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics guidance.

In applying to this competition, you are entering into a competitive process. This competition has a funding limit, so we may not be able to fund all the proposed projects. It may be the case that your project scores highly but we are still unable to fund it.

This competition closes at 11am UK time on the deadline stated in this Innovate UK competition brief. We cannot guarantee other government or third party sites will always show the correct competition information.

Funding type

Grant

Project size

Your total grant funding request must be between £25,000 and £150,000.

Accessibility and Inclusion

We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to making our application process accessible to everyone. This includes making reasonable adjustments, for people who have a disability or a long-term condition and face barriers applying to us.

You can contact us at any time to ask for guidance.

We recommend you contact us no later than 10 days before this competition’s closing date to allow us to put the most suitable support in place. The support we can provide may be limited if you contact us close to the competition deadline.

You can contact Innovate UK by email or call 0300 321 4357. Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

Who can apply

Your project

Your project must:

  • have a grant funding request between £25,000 and £150,000
  • last between one month and three months
  • carry out its project work in the UK
  • intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
  • not start before 1 January 2025
  • end by 31 March 2025
  • have the endorsement of your area steering group

To obtain an endorsement please submit an Expression of Interest to the local steering group contact by email before the 27th of September.

Projects must always start on the first of the month. You must not start your project until your Grant Offer Letter has been approved by Innovate UK. Any delays within Project Setup may mean we need to delay your project start date.

You must only include eligible project costs in your application.

You will be made ineligible if you exceed the Minimal Financial Assistance limit. You must submit a completed declaration as part of your application.

Lead organisation

To lead a project or work alone your organisation must be a UK registered:

  • business of any size
  • academic institution
  • research and technology organisation (RTO)
  • charity
  • not for profit
  • public sector organisation

More information on the different types of organisation can be found in our Funding rules.

Project team

To collaborate with the lead, your organisation must be a UK registered:

  • business of any size
  • academic institution
  • charity
  • not for profit
  • public sector organisation
  • research and technology organisation (RTO)

Each partner organisation must be invited into the Innovation Funding Service (IFS) by the lead to collaborate on a project. Once partners have accepted the invitation, they will be asked to login or to create an account in IFS. They are responsible for entering their own project costs in the application.

To be an eligible collaboration, the lead and at least one other organisation must apply for funding when entering their costs into the application.

Subcontractors

Subcontractors are allowed in this competition.

Subcontractors can be from anywhere in the UK and you must select them through your usual procurement process.

You can use subcontractors from overseas but must make the case in your application as to why you cannot use suppliers from the UK.

You must also provide a detailed rationale, evidence of the potential UK contractors you approached and the reasons why they were unable to work with you.

We expect all subcontractor costs to be justified and appropriate to the total eligible project costs. We will not accept a cheaper cost as a sufficient reason to use an overseas subcontractor.

Number of applications

A business of any size, academic institution, charity, not-for-profit, public sector organisation or research and technology organisation (RTO) can lead in any number of applications and can also be included as a collaborator in any number of applications.

If an organisation is not leading any application, it can collaborate in any number of applications.

Organisations that are leading or collaborating in multiple applications must be able to prove they can deliver on all applications. The funding required for the total number of applications must be not exceed the Minimal Financial Assistance (MFA) limit.

Sanctions

This competition will not fund you, or provide any financial benefit to any individual or entities directly or indirectly involved with you, which would expose Innovate UK or any direct or indirect beneficiary of funding from Innovate UK to UK Sanctions. For example, through any procurement, commercial, business development or supply chain activity with any entity as lead, partner or subcontractor related to these countries, administrations and terrorist groups.

Use of animals in research and innovation

Innovate UK expects and supports the provision and safeguarding of welfare standards for animals used in research and innovation, according to best practice and up to date guidance.

Applicants must ensure that all of the proposed work within projects, both that in the UK and internationally, will comply with the UKRI guidance on the use of animals in research and innovation.

Any projects selected for funding which involve animals will be asked to provide additional information on welfare and ethical considerations, as well as compliance with any relevant legislation as part of the project start-up process. This information will be reviewed before an award is made.

Previous applications

You can use a previously submitted application to apply for this competition.

If you have previously submitted an application that reached our assessment stage, you can re-apply once more with the same proposal.

If there are minor differences to the proposal, but it is judged by us to be ‘not materially different’, the same rule applies.

We will not award you funding if you have:

Minimal Financial Assistance (and De minimis where applicable)

Grant funding in this competition is awarded as Minimal Financial assistance (MFA). This allows public bodies to award up to £315,000 to an enterprise in a 3-year rolling financial period.

In your application, you will be asked to declare previous funding received by you. This will form part of the financial checks ahead of Innovate UK making a formal grant offer.

To establish your eligibility, we need to check that our support added to the amount you have previously received does not exceed the limit of £315,000 in the ‘applicable period’.

The applicable period is made up of:

(a) the elapsed part of the current financial year, and

(b) the two financial years immediately preceding the current financial year.

You must include any funding which you have received during the applicable period under:

You do not need to include aid or subsidies which have been granted on a different basis, for example, an aid award granted under the General Block Exemption Regulation.

Further information about the Subsidy Control Act 2022 requirements can be found in the Subsidy Control Act 2022 (legislation.gov.uk)

EU Commission rules now only apply in limited circumstances. Please see the Windsor Framework to check if these rules apply to your organisation.

Further information

If you are unsure about your obligations under the Subsidy Control Act 2022, you should take independent legal advice. We cannot advise on individual eligibility or your legal obligations.

Funding

We have allocated up to £1.3 million to fund innovation projects in this competition.

Your total project costs will be up to 100% funded, up to the maximum grant of £150,000 Your grant funding request detailed within your application must not exceed £150,000. If your grant funding request exceeds £150,000 then your application will be made ineligible. Your project costs can be higher than your grant funding request.

You can make reference to any additional voluntary contribution in your application answers. It must not be detailed in the finance section.

For more information on company sizes, please refer to the Company accounts guidance.

If you are applying for an award funded under European Commission Regulations, the definitions are set out in the European Commission Recommendation of 6 May 2003.

Your proposal

The aim of this competition is to develop impactful local activities and events that focus on supporting the growth of the cyber security sector and the development of cyber security skills.

These will be to resolve geographical disparities in the development and growth of the cyber security sector and to reduce the skills gap in the sector.

Your project must:

  • be delivered in one of the seven specified areas
  • demonstrate clear impact in the cyber security sector of the region through the development of strong and innovative cyber security ecosystems or increasing opportunities for activities to reduce the skills gap in the sector
  • have the endorsement of your area steering group

The seven specified areas are:

  • Northern Ireland
  • North-West England
  • South-West England
  • Yorkshire & Humber
  • Northeast England
  • East Midlands
  • West Midlands

Further information and contact details on your area’s steering group can be found in the Supporting Information tab.

Your project can:

  • consider self-sustaining mechanisms to continue after the funding period
  • consider scalability and how the idea could expand within the area or be replicated elsewhere
  • demonstrate collaboration with other local organisations or government bodies to boost reach and impact

We welcome applications that support women into the cyber workforce and initiatives that are aimed at inspiring young girls to consider a technology career.

We also welcome applications that encourage the adoption of Government products, such as Cyber Essentials or the professional titles introduced by the UK Cyber Security Council.

Portfolio approach

We want to fund a variety of projects across different locations. We call this a portfolio approach.

Specific themes

Your project must focus on one or more of the following:

  • cyber security skills for local people and communities to reduce the skills gap
  • upskilling underrepresented demographics in the cyber security sector
  • strengthening the local cyber security sector through area partnerships and forging links between industry, public sector and academia
  • supporting the development of strong and innovative cyber security ecosystems
  • increasing opportunities for local people to pursue a career in cyber security, paying particular attention to underrepresented communities

Projects we will not fund

We are not funding projects that:

  • are not in scope for this competition
  • do not have clear impact in one or more of the seven specified areas
  • do not have an impact or application in cyber security
  • duplicate activities of the CyberFirst programme

We cannot fund projects that:

  • involve primary production in fishery and aquaculture
  • involve primary production in agriculture
  • have activities relating to the purchase of road freight transport
  • are not allowed under De minimis regulation restrictions
  • are not eligible to receive Minimal Financial Assistance
  • are dependent on export performance, for example, giving an award to a baker on the condition that they export a certain quantity of bread to another country
  • are dependent on domestic inputs usage, for example, if we give an award to a baker on the condition that they use 50% UK flour in their product

16 September 2024
Competition opens
19 September 2024
Online briefing event: watch the recording
Briefing slides are now available to download from supporting information.
9 October 2024 11:00am
Competition closes
6 November 2024 2:47pm
Applicants notified

Before you start

You must read the guidance on applying for a competition on the Innovation Funding Service before you start.

Before submitting, it is the lead applicant’s responsibility to make sure:

  • that all the information provided in the application is correct
  • your proposal meets the eligibility and scope criteria
  • all sections of the application are marked as complete
  • if collaborative, that all partners have completed all assigned sections and accepted the terms and conditions (T&Cs)

You can reopen your application once submitted, up until the competition deadline. You must resubmit the application before the competition deadline.

What we ask you

The application is split into three sections:

  1. Project details.
  2. Application questions.
  3. Finances.

Accessibility and Inclusion

We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to making our application process accessible to everyone. This includes making reasonable adjustments, for people who have a disability or a long-term condition and face barriers applying to us.

You can contact us at any time to ask for guidance.

We recommend you contact us at least 10 days before this competition’s closing date to allow us to put the most suitable support in place. The support we can provide may be limited if you contact us close to the competition deadline.

You can contact Innovate UK by email or call 0300 321 4357. Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

1. Project details

This section provides background for your application and is not scored.

Application team

Decide which organisations will work with you on your project and invite people from those organisations to help complete the application.

Application details

Give your project’s title, start date and duration.

Project summary

Describe your project briefly and be clear about what makes it innovative. We use this section to assign experts to assess your application.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Public description

Describe your project in detail, and in a way that you are happy to see published. Do not include any commercially sensitive information. If we award your project funding, we will publish this description. This can happen before you start your project.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Scope

Describe how your project fits the scope of the competition. If your project is not in scope, it will not be sent for assessment. We will tell you the reason why.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

2. Application questions

The assessors will score all your answers apart from questions 1 to 6. You will receive feedback for each scored question. Find out more about how our assessors assess and how we select applications for funding.

You must answer all questions. Your answer to each question can be up to 400 words long. Do not include any website addresses (URLs) in your answers.

Question 1. Applicant location (not scored)

You must state the name and full registered address of your organisation and any partners or subcontractors working on your project.

We are collecting this information to understand the geographical location of all applicants.

Question 2. Minimal Financial Assistance declaration (not scored)

You must download the declaration template. You must complete this, declaring any funding received under Minimal Financial Assistance (previously referred to as Special Drawing Rights) or De minimis awards, (from any source of public funding) in the applicable period.

You must complete all the fields on your form before uploading.

You must write “declaration attached” in the question text box.

You must upload the completed declaration as an appendix. It must be a PDF and must be in 11 point font size.

You must keep all documentation relating to Minimal Financial Assistance (previously referred to as Special Drawing Rights) and other De minimis awards for a period of six years and be prepared to release it to any public funding body which requests it.

Question 3. Animal testing (not scored)

Will your project involve any trials with animals or animal testing?

You must select one option:

  • Yes
  • No

We will only support innovation projects conducted to the highest standards of animal welfare.

Further information for proposals involving animal testing is available at the UKRI Good Research Hub and NC3R’s animal welfare guidance.

Question 4. Permits and licences (not scored)

Will you have the correct permits and licences in place to carry out your project?

We are unable to fund projects who do not have the correct permits or licences in place by your project start date.

You must select one option:

  • Yes
  • No
  • In process of being applied for
  • Not applicable

Question 5. Delivery location (not scored)

Where will your project be delivered?

You must select one option:

  • Northern Ireland
  • North-West England
  • South-West England
  • Yorkshire & Humber
  • Northeast England
  • East Midlands
  • West Midlands

Question 6. Steering group endorsement (not scored)

Have you received endorsement from your local steering group?

  • Yes
  • No

You must submit the endorsement from your local steering group as an appendix to support your answer. It must be a PDF, up to 2 A4 pages long, and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be in 11 point font size. A failure to submit this appendix will make you ineligible.

Question 7. Need or challenge

What is the need, challenge or opportunity behind your project?

Explain:

  • the main motivation for the project
  • whether you have identified any similar initiatives, including those close to market or in development and any current limitations
  • any work you have already done to respond to this need, for example, if the project focuses on developing an existing capability or building a new one
  • the wider economic, social, environmental, cultural or political challenges which are influential in creating the opportunity, such as incoming regulations

Question 8. Approach

What approach will you take and where will the focus of the project be?

Explain:

  • how you will respond to the need, challenge or opportunity identified
  • how you will improve on the nearest current state-of-the-art identified
  • the freedom you have to operate
  • how this project fits with your current product, service lines or offerings
  • the nature of the outputs you expect from the project, for example, report, demonstrator, know-how, new process, product or service design and how these will help you to target the need, challenge or opportunity identified

You can submit one appendix to support your answer. It can include diagrams and charts. It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages but must be in 11 point font size.

Question 9. Team and resources

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Explain:

  • the roles, skills and experience of all members of the project team that are relevant to the approach you will be taking
  • the resources, equipment and facilities needed for the project and how you will access them
  • the details of any vital external parties, including subcontractors, who you will need to work with to successfully carry out the project
  • if your project is collaborative, the current relationships between project partners and how these will change as a result of the project
  • any roles you will need to recruit

You can submit one appendix with a short summary of the main people working on the project to support your answer. It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages but must be in 11 point font size.

Question 10. Outcomes and plan for continuation

How are you going to grow and continue your initiative after the funding period?

Please indicate if your initiative is a one-off project.

Explain:

  • your current position in the markets and supply or value chains outlined, and whether you will be extending or establishing your market position
  • your target customers or end users, and the value to them
  • your self sustaining mechanism
  • your strategy for scalability and how the idea could expand within the area or be replicated elsewhere
  • if your initiative is a one-off and detail the reason for this

If there is any research organisation activity in the project, describe:

  • your plans to spread the project’s research outputs over a reasonable timescale
  • how you expect to use the results generated from the project in further research activities

Question 11. Wider impacts

What impact might this project have outside the project team?

Describe, and where possible, measure the economic benefits from the project to:

  • external parties
  • customers
  • others in the supply chain
  • broader industry
  • the UK economy

Describe, and where possible, measure:

  • any expected impact on government priorities
  • any expected regional impacts of the project

Describe any expected social impacts, either positive or negative on, for example:

  • social inclusion or exclusion
  • jobs, such as safeguarding, creating, changing or displacing them
  • education
  • public empowerment
  • regulations
  • diversity

Question 12. Project management

How will you manage the project effectively?

Explain:

  • the main work packages of the project, indicating the lead partner assigned to each and the total cost of each one
  • your approach to project management, identifying any major tools and mechanisms you will use to get a successful project outcome
  • the management reporting lines
  • your project plan in enough detail to identify any links or dependencies between work packages or milestones

If you are leading or collaborating in multiple applications, explain how you would effectively manage resources to deliver in multiple projects.

You must submit a project plan or Gantt chart as an appendix to support your answer. It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages but must be in 11 point font size.

Question 13. Risks

What are the main risks for this project?

Describe:

  • the main risks and uncertainties of the project, including the technical, commercial, managerial and environmental risks
  • how you will mitigate these risks
  • any project inputs that are critical to completion, such as resources, expertise, data sets
  • any output likely to be subject to regulatory requirements, certification, ethical issues and so on, and how you will manage this
  • any risks that may arise from delivering multiple projects

You must submit a risk register as an appendix to support your answer. It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages but must be in 11 point font size.

Question 14. Added value

How will this public funding help you to accelerate or enhance your project? What impact would this award have on the organisations involved?

Explain:

  • what advantages public funding would offer your project, for example: appeal to investors, more partners, reduced risk or a faster route to market
  • the likely impact of the project outcomes on the organisations involved
  • what other routes of investment or means of support you have already engaged with and why they were not suitable
  • how any existing or potential investment or support will be used in conjunction with the grant funding
  • what your project would look like without public funding

Question 15. Costs and value for money

How much will the project cost and how does it represent value for money for the team and the taxpayer?

In terms of the project goals, explain:

  • the total eligible project costs
  • the grant you are requesting
  • how each partner will finance any contributions to the project
  • how this project represents value for money for you and the taxpayer
  • how it compares to what you would spend your money on otherwise
  • the balance of costs and grant across the project partners
  • any subcontractor costs and why they are critical to the project
  • any in-kind support such as venues, facilities and events

3. Finances

Each organisation in your project must complete their own project costs, organisation details and funding details in the application.

Academic institutions must complete and upload a Je-S form.

Your projects total grant funding request must not exceed the maximum of £150,000. If your grant funding request does exceed this maximum, then your application will be made ineligible.

You can make reference to any additional voluntary contribution in your application question answers but these must not be detailed in this finance section.

For full details on what costs you can claim see our project costs guidance. You can also view our application finances video.

Assessment

Your application will be reviewed by three independent assessors based on the content of your application and their skills or expertise relevant to your project. All of the scores awarded will count towards the total score used to make the funding decision unless you are notified otherwise.

You can find out more about our assessment process in the General Guidance.

Your submitted application will be assessed against these criteria:

Background and further information

Steering Group Endorsement

To ensure that proposed projects address the specific needs of the area in which they will be delivered, we require applicants to secure the endorsement of their local steering group before they are formally assessed by Innovate UK.

Steering groups will not be asked to complete a full assessment on applications but rather consider how well the proposed projects align with the priorities of their local cyber ecosystem. The steering groups will not be limited in the amount of applications they can choose to endorse.

Steering Groups will be representative of their local cyber ecosystem. Membership of steering groups will vary across each region but may include representatives from government, academia and industry. This may include further and higher education institutions, cyber clusters, cyber businesses and business representative organisations.

Before submitting your application, you need to prove the endorsement of your local steering group.

For that, please submit an Expression of Interest by email before the 27th of September outlining:

  • description of your idea
  • expected impact in the area
  • estimated cost
Your email must be no more than 350 words.

Local steering group contacts:

The endorsement of your idea from the steering group will be communicated by the 4th of October.

Please attach your local steering group endorsement as an appendix to Question 6.

We encourage that you start your application on the portal in parallel to receiving the confirmation from the steering group to avoid delays in submitting your application.

The endorsement of the steering group is a necessary requirement to apply but it does not imply that your application has been successful for funding.

We will not fund applications that duplicate the CyberFirst programme. If you are unsure if your activity would duplicate an existing CyberFirst activity please contact the relevant steering group.

Background

The UK has a thriving cyber security sector, however not all areas are benefiting from it. The latest sectoral analysis reflects a sector concentrated in a handful of key locations, with some left behind, both in terms of economic growth, availability of skilled jobs and resilience to threats.

A joined-up, place-tailored and delivered approach to growth, skills and resilience, will improve engagement with the cyber sector and ensure aspirations for a cross-UK whole of society approach becomes reality.

In 2022/23 Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) piloted the Cyber Local programme which allowed regional organisations to access grant funding for impactful interventions targeting cyber skills and innovation. The programme was expanded in 2023/24 and has demonstrated the value of regionally targeted interventions and working closely with regional delivery partners to pilot new, innovative ideas.

The UK's cyber security sector is a vital driver of economic growth and digital transformation. The sector generated £11.9 billion in revenue in the past year, up 13% since 2023, and employing 60,689 people. Total GVA for the sector is estimated to have reached circa £6.5 billion, an increase of 4% since 2023.

With an ever evolving threat landscape and growing attack surface, it is critical that our cyber sector innovates and realizes the promising opportunities for economic growth. However, geographical disparities in access to investment, skills and support for innovation persist. There are regions with the potential to better exploit and grow their cyber sectors. The cyber security skills gap needs direct and immediate attention. The annual DSIT report on the Cyber Security Skills in the UK Labour Market (2022) highlights how approximately 697,000 businesses (51%) have a basic skills gap, which hinders them from meeting the basic tasks laid out in the Government’s Cyber Essentials scheme. As a result, DSIT works with partners across government and industry to develop a sustainable talent pipeline that meets the skills demand, both now and in the future. The Government is also committed to regional devolution and levelling up. Further, those regions or localities most in need of levelling up will also suffer disproportionately from other economic shocks.

DSIT wants to provide those who best understand what is needed at a local level with the means to deliver activities tailored to address those gaps. DSIT has established local steering groups with key stakeholders in the cyber community to facilitate this and to ensure funds do not duplicate or cut across existing work in the locality, adding value and attracting in-kind and matched funding from local partners. The Steering group grows capacity, supports partnership working in the locality, and contributes to the whole-of-society approach ambitions of the National Cyber Strategy.

Briefing slides

Briefing slides are available to download here.

If your application is successful

If you are successful with this application, you will be asked to set up your project.

You will be notified by email on the date published for this competition. Notifications may be sent any time up to 5pm.

You must follow the unique link embedded in your email notification. This takes you to your Innovation Funding Service (IFS) Set Up portal, where we gather the information to set up your project.

Watch our video on what steps there are before a project starts.

During the project set up you will be assigned a delivery executive who will guide you through the whole project set up process.

Following your email notification, you will need to provide the following within 5 days (including weekends and bank holidays):

  • the name and contact details of your project manager and project finance lead
  • a finance contact for all partners
  • a copy of your bank details

You will need to provide the following within 30 days (including weekends and bank holidays):

  • a collaboration agreement, if collaborative
  • an exploitation plan

You will have 90 days (including weekends and bank holidays) to complete all of your project set up. Within this time, you will also be required to submit:

  • project location
  • any answers to financial queries we have requested
  • any requested documentation to support your project such as a spend profile

Your funding offer may be withdrawn if project setup is not completed within this or an alternative timeframe as advised by Innovate UK.

In order for us to process your claims, you must make sure you have a valid UK business bank account. It can take several weeks for a new account to be created if required. We recommend starting this process as early as possible to avoid any delays to your project start date.

The bank account which grant is to be paid into must:

  • be a business account in the same name as the organisation listed in IFS
  • be from a UK bank regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA)
  • have a cheque and credit clearing facility

Online accounts are eligible as long as they meet the above criteria.

Innovate UK will accept most banking societies apart from:

  • Viva Wallet
  • Intesa Sanpaolo
  • Equals Money UK Limited
  • Modulr FS Limited

If you have any doubts that your bank account will not meet Innovate UK's funding criteria, you can use the sort code checker. If you input the sort code and find a tick next to the ‘BACS Direct Credit payments can be sent to this sort code’, this will give you an indication that the bank account you hold is acceptable.

Finance checks

We will carry out checks to make sure you are an established company with access to the funds necessary to complete the project.

You must check your IFS portal regularly and respond to any requests we have sent for additional information to avoid any delays.

Failure to complete project setup may result in your grant offer being withdrawn.

Your Grant offer letter (GOL)

Once you have successfully completed project setup, we will issue your GOL.

The GOL will be made available on your IFS portal. You will need to sign and upload this for us to approve. Once approved we will send you an email with permission to start your project on your confirmed start date.

You must not start your project before the date stated on your email and GOL. Any costs incurred before your agreed start date cannot be claimed as part of your grant.

If your GOL is approved on or before the fifteenth of the month it will be dated from the first of that month. If your GOL is approved after the fifteenth, it will be dated the first of the next month.

If your application is unsuccessful

If you are unsuccessful with your application this time, you can view feedback from the assessors. This will be available to you on your IFS portal following notification.

Sometimes your application will have scored well, and you will receive positive comments from the assessors. You may be unsuccessful as your average score was not above the funding threshold or your project has not been selected under the portfolio approach if this is applied for this competition.

Find a project partner

If you want help to find a project partner, contact Innovate UK Business Connect.

Support for SMEs from Innovate UK Business Growth

If you receive an award, you will be contacted about working with an innovation and growth specialist at Innovate UK Business Growth. This service forms part of our funded offer to you.

These specialists focus on growing innovative businesses and ensuring that projects contribute to their growth. Working one-to-one, they can help you to identify your best strategy and harness world-class resources to grow and achieve scale.

We encourage you to engage with Innovate UK Business Growth, delivered by a knowledgeable and objective specialist near you.

Protecting your innovation

A Secure Innovation campaign has been developed to help founders and leaders of innovative startups protect their technology, competitive advantage, and reputation.

This was developed by UK’s National Protective Security Authority (NPSA) and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

Data sharing

This competition is jointly operated by Innovate UK, and Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) (each an ‘agency’).

Any relevant information submitted and produced during the application process concerning your application can be shared by one agency with the other, for its individual storage, processing and use.

This means that any information given to or generated by Innovate UK in respect of your application may be passed on to Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and vice versa. This would include, but is not restricted to:

  • the information stated on the application, including the personal details of all applicants
  • scoring and feedback on the application
  • information received during the management and administration of the grant, such as Monitoring Service Provider (MSP) reports and Independent Accountant Reports

Innovate UK and Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) are directly accountable to you for their holding and processing of your information, including any personal data and confidential information. Data is held in accordance with their own policies. Accordingly, Innovate UK, Innovate UK Business Connect and Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) will be data controllers for personal data submitted during the application.

Innovate UK’s Privacy Policy

Innovate UK Business Connect Privacy Policy

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology Privacy Policy

Innovate UK complies with the requirements of UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, and is committed to upholding data protection legislation, and protecting your information in accordance with data protection principles.

The Information Commissioner’s Office also has a useful guide for organisations, which outlines the data protection principles.

Contact us

If you need more information about how to apply or you want to submit your application in Welsh, email support@iuk.ukri.org or call 0300 321 4357.

Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

Innovate UK or any of our partners will not tolerate abusive language in any written or verbal correspondence, applications, social media or any other form that might affect staff.

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