A new wave of innovation and investment funding is opening this summer, bringing fresh opportunities for North West founders, SMEs and ambitious businesses ready to move ideas into action.
From medical diagnostics, Agri-tech manufacturing, this month’s opportunities offer substantial support to help organisations validate, develop and scale high‑impact innovation. And if you’re unsure which route is right for you, our team is on hand to help you navigate your options with confidence.
Government-Backed Loans
Start Up Loans
Good news for early stage businesses: the British Business Bank has extended the eligibility criteria for Start Up Loans. Start Up Loans offer £500 to £25,000 in government backed funding, along with 12 months of free mentoring and ongoing business support. Applications are open year round, making this a flexible and accessible option for founders seeking early stage finance.
Who should apply: Founders starting a new business or those trading for up to five years who are looking for affordable finance and structured support.
NPIF II Smaller Loans
NPIF II Smaller Loans offers £25,000 to £100,000 to support SMEs with working capital, expansion plans, asset purchases or commercial premises. Businesses also benefit from flexible terms and dedicated one-to-one support throughout the process.
Who should apply: Small and medium-sized businesses across the North West of England looking to grow, invest in assets, or strengthen their working capital.
Equity Investment
Early Stage Equity
Early Stage Equity supports ambitious early-stage businesses across the North West with investment typically ranging from £25,000 to £2 million. The fund focuses on digital, creative and technology-led businesses, helping to accelerate innovation, product development and growth.
Who should apply: Early-stage businesses in the North West with high-growth potential and a scalable business model
Need support exploring your options?
The Access to Finance team can help you review funding routes, understand what you’re eligible for and prepare strong applications.
Get in touch with the A2F team for tailored support.
Innovation funding opportunities (Closing June)
European Space Agency: Call For Proposals - Wildfire Response
ESA invites proposals for innovative services that advance wildfire management using space technology and data. Up to €600,000 for proof-of-concept projects. This can cover up to 50% of costs for UK applicants.
Deadline: Tuesday 2nd June 2026 17:00
Who should apply: Innovators with commercially viable solutions for space applications advancing wildfire management.
Rapid transfusion diagnostics: optimising safety on deployed operations
This UKDI competition is run on behalf of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and Defence Medical Services (DMS). It is seeking proposals that develop technology to reduce the logistical burden associated with collecting, testing and administering blood in a deployed setting. Funding available in the region of £500,000 to £700,000 per proposal.
Deadline: Tuesday 2nd June 2026 12:00
Who should apply: Innovators developing, logistically light blood testing device(s) to test for ABO blood group and / or BBV at TRL 4 and above.
Future offshore wind technologies: industrial research
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £10 million to support Industrial research in Offshore Wind across the two strands of the competition. This funding is from Innovate UK.
Deadline: Wednesday 3rd June 2026 11:00
Who should apply: Businesses with mid-stage innovation projects within offshore wind.
Future offshore wind technologies: feasibility studies
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £10 million to support Feasibility Studies in Offshore Wind across the two strands of the competition. This funding is from Innovate UK.
Deadline: Wednesday 3rd June 2026 11:00
Who should apply: Businesses with early stage innovation projects within offshore wind
CfI: Advanced Connectivity Technologies (ACT) – Call 1
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of £15 million, including VAT, to develop near term, testable solutions that advance the UK’s Secure & Resilient and Sustainable Network Grand Challenges through deployable prototypes on UK testbeds.
Deadline: Wednesday 3rd June 2026 11:00
Who should apply: Businesses developing near-term, testable solutions that advance UK capability in the 2 Grand Challenge areas of: Secure and Resilient Networks and Sustainable Networks.
AgriScale - Accelerating Agri-tech manufacturing: Industrial Research
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £5 million for projects to close product technology gaps that are preventing movement towards commercial acceptance, scale up and manufacture. This funding is from Innovate UK.
Deadline: Wednesday 3rd June 2026 11:00
Who should apply: Late stage Agri-tech innovators looking to advance their product performance and reliability and start development of their manufacturing and supply chain capability.
AgriScale - Accelerating Agri-tech manufacturing: Experimental Development
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £8 million for projects to accelerate Agri-tech manufacturing. This funding is from Innovate UK.
Deadline: Wednesday 3rd June 2026 11:00
Who should apply: Agri-tech innovators looking to advance their product performance and reliability, and their manufacturing and supply chain capability, to achieve production at scale.
Frontier AI Discover
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £2.5 million to develop feasibility studies for frontier AI and foundation models. This funding is from Innovate UK.
Deadline: Wednesday 10th June 2026 11:00
Who should apply: Businesses developing AI-Enabled solutions for Health and Life Sciences, advanced materials, national security and defence or advancing foundational model AI capabilities.
EIT Strategic Innovation Open Call – Challenges in Urban Mobility
Apply to the Strategic Innovation Open Call to develop impactful solutions that address the most pressing challenges in urban mobility. Each project may receive up to € 2 million of EIT funding.
The call focuses on supporting ambitious, market-critical projects that tackle clearly defined problems faced by cities, public authorities, and mobility providers: Urban logistics, Public transport, Mobility data management, Electrification of transport and alternative fuels, and Health and mobility.
Deadline: Thursday 18th June
Who should apply: This is a multi-beneficiary call for proposals and therefore there must be a minimum of two independent legal entities, working together. These entities must be established in two different European Member States, and/or Third countries associated with Horizon Europe.
Applying for grant funding can be daunting; from finding the right fund to preparing an application, support is available to you.
If you’re an Innovation business, reach out to your Specialist today, to find out more about how we can help you reach your innovation and business goals in 2025.
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