(this list is indicative not exhaustive)

Capital investment, job creation and productivity

Grants for capital investment either from the United Kingdom or the European Union are almost invariably connected to the creation or sustaining of employment. It is therefore essential that you specify how many new jobs are to be created or, as a minimum, how many old jobs will be protected. Capital grants are usually only available where there will be regional or national benefit as a result of the project.

Capital investment grants typically run at between 10% and 20% of the project value and/or between £2,500 and £7,000 per job created. These grants are an exception to the rule that grants are not location specific as they are highly location specific.

Nevertheless, through a combination of DTI/BERR/BSI and EU sources over 34% of the UK is eligible by location for top level assistance. SMEs are theoretically eligible throughout England (Scotland, Wales and NI are separately administered) but in many regions the total support available is so small as to make the assistance pointless in practice. Application procedures for these grants are complex and extended not least because the Department of Trade and Industry, briefly BERR, now BIS are reluctant or unwilling to publish the exact conditions applying to the grants offered. Moreover, there are marked regional variations between different RDA offices and how they apply the guidelines and rules. The use of a consultant is recommended in order to maximise the grant and to succeed in a reasonable time frame!

Export

Export grants normally take the form of subsidised assistance or the provision of free services. There are over 15 different schemes ranging from exhibition attendance subsidy to the provision of a grant for market research or subsidy in finding new agents or distributors. In most instances assistance is readily available and application is very simple.

Employment and Training

Generally, training assistance is provided through local Learning and Skills Councils.  Application is normally straightforward. Assistance will take typically the form of payment of a percentage of employment/training costs but conditions are strict and restrictive. There are numerous EU schemes but they usually involve transnational training. High level engineering training is well supported.

Research and Development

Research & Development is strongly grant aided both by the United Kingdom government and the European Union. Support, typically, runs at between 30% and 50% of total project costs but can be considerably higher. These grants are therefore very valuable. Support may be for basic or applied R&D and demonstration schemes. Areas supported are normally specified by the grantor (top down support) but there are exceptions especially for SMEs. Collaboration, often transnational is a feature of many grants.
The key factor is the degree of innovation which is proposed. This can vary from the elucidation of a fundamental scientific problem to the application of a known technology in a novel fashion. Eligible costs usually include salaries, consumables, IPR protection, capital expenditure, consultancy and justifiable overheads. Eligible costs in major R&D projects may run to millions of pounds and thus the grants too.
R&D grants are complex in their administration, particularly if EU based, and even in the United Kingdom many grants are awarded on a competitive or challenge basis. Assistance with grant applications is highly advisable if the application is to be successful and obtain the maximum grant in a reasonable time frame. Please click here for further details.

Rural Development

There is some £4 billion worth of grants available for rural development throughout the UK between the period 2008 and 2013. (This is quite apart from the Common Agricultural Policy monies whose figures are so large as to be incredible.) In England this money is distributed on a regional basis by the Regional Development Agencies who will each have formulated a separate plan as to how to spend the money to the benefit of farmers. In essence though Rural Development Grants may assist in such matters as farm diversification, forestry, water management, sustainable energy technologies and to the processing of primary agricultural produce. Recently these grants, exceptionally, have theoretically been increased to 100% of the project costs but the grants are discretionary and therefore levels of 50% to 60% are much more likely to be awarded. Grant applications are for the most part cumbersome and requiring detailed business planning and consultancy assistance is recommended for capital intensive projects.

Environment, Energy and Cleantech

There is substantial support, not surprisingly, for the conservation and management of energy, the generation of energy by renewables, R&D into sustainable energy generation and a huge amount of both UK governmental and EU support for environmental or ‘cleantech’ technologies both at a basic R&D level through applied R&D, demonstration schemes and application. Much of this is centrally dictated and thus purposes are usually very narrowly drawn at any one time. Nonetheless anyone involved in the industry should check to see if their projects meet the current purposes and, moreover, users of energy, effectively all of us, and those involved in the environment are likely to obtain support at least at a consultancy and advisory level and often with the implementation of ‘cleantech’ technologies.

EU

The EU has such diverse grants and funding schemes whose aims and objectives are so broadly drawn that almost any project you could conceive could be eligible for funding. In practice of course this is not the case but such diverse matters as fishery, product marketing, bringing together peoples over national boundaries, rural development, every known form of R&D, energy, ‘cleantech’, sustainable production, trans-national training, youth training are but the tip of an exceptionally large grant iceberg. In fact, however, much of the money is channeled through national organisations and thus loses its EU identity by the time it is available to businesses or commercial organisations through national bodies. If, however, your project does not fall into the key project areas defined above it’s always worth having a troll through the EU to see if support is available.