Early-stage start-ups can combine an Innovate UK grant with matched investment through Growth Catalyst.

Growth Catalyst is essentially a rebrand of Innovate UK’s Investor Partnerships, with the same core idea: a package that links grant funding to aligned private investment to help high-potential start-ups move faster and raise smarter.

What is a Growth Catalyst grant?

Innovate UK is backing businesses that have strong technical ambition and a credible route to commercial growth, but are still early in their journey. In plain terms, it is designed for companies that are building something genuinely innovative, often pre-revenue, and planning a proper fundraise.

The differentiator is the “package” approach. Instead of a grant alone, you apply for:

• An Innovate UK grant to run an R&D project, and;
• Aligned investment from a participating investor partner, plus post-project support to help you scale

That second part is not window dressing. The investor is part of the assessment process and Innovate UK will contact them to validate the status and impact of the proposed investment.

Who is the grant for?

Growth Catalyst is built for SMEs, typically early-stage and often pre-revenue. The common signals we look for are:

• An active or imminent fundraising plan
• Investor conversations already happening
• SEIS or EIS in place, or in progress
• A defined R&D project with clear milestones and commercial outcomes

If a business is not ready to engage investors, it is usually the wrong competition. This scheme is designed to accelerate ventures that are already moving towards investment, not to replace the need for it.

The scope: what are the target sectors?

Growth Catalyst sits within the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy priorities. You must choose one eligible sector and show clear fit. The eight growth-driving sectors include:

• Advanced manufacturing
• Clean energy industries
• Creative industries
• Defence
• Digital and technologies
• Financial services
• Life sciences
• Professional and business services

Within “digital and technologies”, Innovate UK also flags frontier areas like AI, cyber security, engineering biology, quantum, semiconductors, and advanced connectivity technologies.

Practical takeaway: if your story spans multiple sectors, you still need one “home”. Pick the best fit and justify it clearly, rather than trying to be everything everywhere.

How the funding package works

Grant plus aligned investment

The grant can cover a significant share of eligible project costs, but you will need aligned investment alongside it.

Innovate UK’s stated model is:

• Grant funding up to under 70% for feasibility studies and industrial research, and under 45% for experimental development
• Aligned investment of at least 1x to 2x the grant value, depending on project maturity

The aligned investment is a core condition of the package.

Funding rates by project type

The scheme links funding expectations to Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs):

• Feasibility studies (TRL 2 to 3): grant <70%, aligned investment 1x
• Industrial research (TRL 3 to 5): grant <70%, aligned investment 1x
• Experimental development (TRL 6 to 7): grant <45%, aligned investment 2x

So the closer you are to commercial deployment, the more Innovate UK expects the private market to carry the load.

The investor requirement: what “good” looks like

You need an investor partner who is willing to provide an Expression of Interest (EOI) and engage with Innovate UK as part of the decision process.

One detail that trips people up: termsheets should not be signed before award notification. Innovate UK flags this as critical in the process flow.

In practice, you want enough alignment to submit credibly, without locking yourselves into legal terms before you know the funding outcome.

The application process for Growth Catalyst

Innovate UK lays out a clear sequence:

1. Secure an EOI from a participating investor partner
2. Submit the grant application
3. Assessment by Innovate UK assessors and an investor panel
4. Award notification
5. Project set-up, including Innovate UK due diligence and agreeing terms with the investor
6. Receive the Grant Offer Letter
7. Start the project

Your application must also name the investor partner and Innovate UK will contact them to confirm the investment position and how the grant affects it.

What Innovate UK is looking for

Although each competition will have its own emphasis, the standard structure is consistent. You will be assessed on areas including:

• The need or challenge behind the innovation
• Your approach, innovation and differentiation
• Team capability and resources
• Market awareness
• Outcomes, route to market and growth plan
• Wider impacts
• Project management and risks
• Added value of public funding
• Costs and value for money

This is not only an R&D grant application. It is an R&D grant application that must also read like a credible investment case.

Common reasons Growth Catalyst applications fall down

Most misses are not because the idea is weak. They are because the story does not join up.

No clear investor alignment. If the investor commitment is vague, unvalidated, or feels bolted on, assessors will spot it quickly.

Scope is not clear. If you cannot anchor the project clearly to one eligible sector, you risk being ruled out before scoring even starts.

The project plan is not “investable R&D”. A good R&D narrative needs clear uncertainty, method and outputs. But here, it also needs to show how the project de-risks the business and unlocks commercial traction.

Value for money is hand-wavy. You need a logical budget, sensible work packages, and a strong explanation of why public funding accelerates outcomes versus doing it privately.

Where to start

Start with the two go or no-go questions Innovate UK highlights:

1. Do you have an investor?
2. Does the project align with the scope?

If you cannot answer “yes” to both, do not rush the application. Fix the fundamentals first, or you will burn time and credibility.

Then make sure you can answer these internally, cleanly:

• What is the specific technical uncertainty you are resolving?
• What will be demonstrably different at the end of the project?
• What is the commercial outcome and what is the path to revenue?
• What funding is already committed and what is conditional?

How we support Growth Catalyst applications

We help you shape the application as one joined-up story: technical case, delivery plan, commercial traction and investor alignment. We also stress test fit early so you do not waste effort on a competition that is not right for your stage.

If you are already speaking to investors, we can also help you present the grant as part of a coherent funding plan, rather than a side quest. We can also link you with potential investors.

Growth Catalyst grants explained: Innovate UK funding aligned with investment

Early-stage start-ups can combine an Innovate UK grant with matched investment through Growth Catalyst.

Growth Catalyst is essentially a rebrand of Innovate UK’s Investor Partnerships, with the same core idea: a package that links grant funding to aligned private investment to help high-potential start-ups move faster and raise smarter.

What is a Growth Catalyst grant?

Innovate UK is backing businesses that have strong technical ambition and a credible route to commercial growth, but are still early in their journey. In plain terms, it is designed for companies that are building something genuinely innovative, often pre-revenue, and planning a proper fundraise.

The differentiator is the “package” approach. Instead of a grant alone, you apply for:

• An Innovate UK grant to run an R&D project, and;
• Aligned investment from a participating investor partner, plus post-project support to help you scale

That second part is not window dressing. The investor is part of the assessment process and Innovate UK will contact them to validate the status and impact of the proposed investment.

Who is the grant for?

Growth Catalyst is built for SMEs, typically early-stage and often pre-revenue. The common signals we look for are:

• An active or imminent fundraising plan
• Investor conversations already happening
• SEIS or EIS in place, or in progress
• A defined R&D project with clear milestones and commercial outcomes

If a business is not ready to engage investors, it is usually the wrong competition. This scheme is designed to accelerate ventures that are already moving towards investment, not to replace the need for it.

The scope: what are the target sectors?

Growth Catalyst sits within the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy priorities. You must choose one eligible sector and show clear fit. The eight growth-driving sectors include:

• Advanced manufacturing
• Clean energy industries
• Creative industries
• Defence
• Digital and technologies
• Financial services
• Life sciences
• Professional and business services

Within “digital and technologies”, Innovate UK also flags frontier areas like AI, cyber security, engineering biology, quantum, semiconductors, and advanced connectivity technologies.

Practical takeaway: if your story spans multiple sectors, you still need one “home”. Pick the best fit and justify it clearly, rather than trying to be everything everywhere.

How the funding package works

Grant plus aligned investment

The grant can cover a significant share of eligible project costs, but you will need aligned investment alongside it.

Innovate UK’s stated model is:

• Grant funding up to under 70% for feasibility studies and industrial research, and under 45% for experimental development
• Aligned investment of at least 1x to 2x the grant value, depending on project maturity

The aligned investment is a core condition of the package.

Funding rates by project type

The scheme links funding expectations to Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs):

• Feasibility studies (TRL 2 to 3): grant <70%, aligned investment 1x
• Industrial research (TRL 3 to 5): grant <70%, aligned investment 1x
• Experimental development (TRL 6 to 7): grant <45%, aligned investment 2x

So the closer you are to commercial deployment, the more Innovate UK expects the private market to carry the load.

The investor requirement: what “good” looks like

You need an investor partner who is willing to provide an Expression of Interest (EOI) and engage with Innovate UK as part of the decision process.

One detail that trips people up: termsheets should not be signed before award notification. Innovate UK flags this as critical in the process flow.

In practice, you want enough alignment to submit credibly, without locking yourselves into legal terms before you know the funding outcome.

The application process for Growth Catalyst

Innovate UK lays out a clear sequence:

1. Secure an EOI from a participating investor partner
2. Submit the grant application
3. Assessment by Innovate UK assessors and an investor panel
4. Award notification
5. Project set-up, including Innovate UK due diligence and agreeing terms with the investor
6. Receive the Grant Offer Letter
7. Start the project

Your application must also name the investor partner and Innovate UK will contact them to confirm the investment position and how the grant affects it.

What Innovate UK is looking for

Although each competition will have its own emphasis, the standard structure is consistent. You will be assessed on areas including:

• The need or challenge behind the innovation
• Your approach, innovation and differentiation
• Team capability and resources
• Market awareness
• Outcomes, route to market and growth plan
• Wider impacts
• Project management and risks
• Added value of public funding
• Costs and value for money

This is not only an R&D grant application. It is an R&D grant application that must also read like a credible investment case.

Common reasons Growth Catalyst applications fall down

Most misses are not because the idea is weak. They are because the story does not join up.

No clear investor alignment. If the investor commitment is vague, unvalidated, or feels bolted on, assessors will spot it quickly.

Scope is not clear. If you cannot anchor the project clearly to one eligible sector, you risk being ruled out before scoring even starts.

The project plan is not “investable R&D”. A good R&D narrative needs clear uncertainty, method and outputs. But here, it also needs to show how the project de-risks the business and unlocks commercial traction.

Value for money is hand-wavy. You need a logical budget, sensible work packages, and a strong explanation of why public funding accelerates outcomes versus doing it privately.

Where to start

Start with the two go or no-go questions Innovate UK highlights:

1. Do you have an investor?
2. Does the project align with the scope?

If you cannot answer “yes” to both, do not rush the application. Fix the fundamentals first, or you will burn time and credibility.

Then make sure you can answer these internally, cleanly:

• What is the specific technical uncertainty you are resolving?
• What will be demonstrably different at the end of the project?
• What is the commercial outcome and what is the path to revenue?
• What funding is already committed and what is conditional?

How we support Growth Catalyst applications

We help you shape the application as one joined-up story: technical case, delivery plan, commercial traction and investor alignment. We also stress test fit early so you do not waste effort on a competition that is not right for your stage.

If you are already speaking to investors, we can also help you present the grant as part of a coherent funding plan, rather than a side quest. We can also link you with potential investors.

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