One of the support tools that we provide for our Innovation Community is our free, easy-to-use, Funding Finder. Amidst current developments in the COVID-19 pandemic and the effects that this is having on businesses, funding opportunities have arisen to help SMEs and innovators navigate through these difficult times.
We’ve compiled a list of some of the top funding opportunities, which can be found through searching on our Funding Finder, with the potential to provide you with the support you need:
1. Screen Scotland COVID-19 Bridging Bursary Programme
One-off bursaries for freelance PAYE and self-employed screen sector workers in Scotland who are experiencing immediate financial difficulty due to loss of income as a result of COVID-19.
Value: The overall budget for this fund is £1.5 million. Applicants can seek between £500 and £2,500 to help support their immediate needs.
2. Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS)
Cash grants for self-employed individuals (including members of partnerships) whose income has been negatively impacted by COVID-19.
Value: The scheme will provide a grant to self-employed individuals or partnerships, worth 80% of their profits up to a cap of £2,500 per month for three months.
3. Covid-19 Resilience Innovation Project Support
Support is being offered to innovative businesses in Wales to carry out projects that can potentially help to fight the coronavirus.
Value: There is no stipulated maximum level of funding which the programme will provide. Applicants are asked to indicate the amount of support they require in order to complete their project.
4. Coronavirus Business Support Fund for Scotland
Grants are being provided to a range of businesses in Scotland to help them cope with the impacts of the coronavirus.
Value: Two types of grant are now available to ratepayers:
- A one-off £10,000 grant to ratepayers of small businesses in receipt of the Small Business Bonus Scheme (SBBS) or Rural Relief, or eligible for SBBS in receipt of Nursery Relief or Disabled Relief, and with rateable value up to £18,000.
- A one-off grant of £25,000 available to retail, hospitality and leisure business ratepayers with a rateable value between £18,001 and £50,999.
5. North East England Chamber of Commerce Covid-19 Member Relief Fund
Funding to support members of the North East Chamber of Commerce through the Covid-19 outbreak.
Value: The Chamber board has allocated a fund of £100,000. Members can apply for a 50% or 100% rebate on their membership subscriptions for the next three months.
6. Covid-19 Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF)
Through this scheme, the Bank of England will buy short term debt from larger companies in the UK, supporting those that have been affected by a temporary funding squeeze because of the coronavirus disruption, thereby allowing them to finance their short-term liabilities.
Value: The minimum size of an individual security that the Fund will purchase from an individual participant is £1 million nominal. The Bank of England require offers to be rounded to the closest £0.1 million.
7. TechForce19 Challenge
Funding is being offered to innovators and technology companies from across the UK to test new digital solutions to support elderly and vulnerable people who need help while self-isolating during the coronavirus outbreak.
Value: From an overall programme budget of £500,000, selected companies will receive funding of up to £25,000 to develop or test their COVID-19 solution.
8. Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme
The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme will support long-term viable small and medium-sized businesses in the UK to access bank lending and overdrafts, responding to cash-flow pressures caused by the coronavirus.
Value: The scheme will support loans of up to £5 million in value. Businesses can access the first twelve months of that finance interest free, as Government will cover the first year of interest payments. The Government will provide lenders with a guarantee of 80% on each loan.
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9. Creative Scotland COVID-19 Bridging Bursary Fund
A Fund to help sustain creative practice by freelance creative professionals in Scotland who have lost earnings due to the cancellation of work as a result of COVID-19.
Value: The £2 million fund will offer one-off bursary payments of between £500 and £2,500 to help support the immediate needs.
10. Authors' Emergency Fund
Emergency funding for UK authors affected by the Covid-19 Coronavirus crisis.
Value: Grants are likely to be up to £2,000 and designed to meet urgent need with the possibility of review as the situation continues.
Visit our Innovator Support page today to access the Funding Finder and find out more.
If you require any support in accessing the tool, or have any queries about the Innovator Support we have to offer, please contact us at enquiries@ukeic.com
