If you are working with a small business or organisation on an idea that could use a financial boost, you are invited to apply for a Business Innovation Grant in our second round of this new competitive fund.
Funding of £5,000 is available for University-led projects that can be spent on staff time, materials and other project expenses, with the ultimate aim of furthering collaboration and progressing new ideas. This equates to approximately 8-14 days of staff time (depending on your seniority) and could offer you the ring-fenced time you need to take the project forward.
Suggestions for activity include:
- Developing a proof of concept
- Completing initial research that will inform how the concept will develop
- Market research
- Progressing a concept so you’re ready to apply for larger funding, such as a Knowledge Transfer Partnership
- Securing a working relationship so that it leads to further consultancy, research or student placements
- Supporting REF and research outcomes – could this project lead to a new research output or provide evidence for an ongoing impact case study?
Interested? download the application form here. This is an internal competitive application process and all applications will be scored against a clear matrix. Successful projects will need to have their funding spent by May 2020.
This is the second round of BIG funding offered by the University in 2019. The first round, held earlier in the year, attracted around 50 applications resulting in six organisations being successful.
One of those was Burton Latimer-based manufacturer, Versalift UK, which used the BIG fund to link up with Mohammed Ghaleeh, Engineering Lecturer at the University to develop a new automated process. You can read more on this exciting collaboration here
The Business Innovation Grants application deadline is Thursday, 7th November and we are currently promoting this fund out to businesses for expressions of interest to match up with relevant academics.
For more information please email Charlotte Patrick
We are running a BIG Ideas Funding event on Thursday, 10th October at 10am-12pm to coincide with the launch of this popular fund. Please book your space here