Lots of information about grants and funding passes through my inbox and this is an opportunity for me to share that with you. This month the funds range from hyper-local to national with some for general small businesses or with a sector focus.
I’ve shared an overview but also links for you to double check the eligibility and requirements of each individual grant. Note the closing dates and times, as some are very specific!
RTO Catapult Grant Scheme – Innovate UK
Launched in April this is an easy to access, easy to administer grant from Innovate UK for £15,000. Apply quickly as the pot ran out by September last year when launched at a similar time. Could be used for product testing, development work or if you need technical expertise to facilitate feasibility.
Closing date: when the £ is all allocated
Apply here: Exploit innovation – Innovate UK Business Growth
Reigate & Banstead Thriving Communities Match Fund
Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector (VCFS) organisations whose projects help communities in Reigate & Banstead to thrive can now apply for grants between £2,000 and £10,000 from a pot of £50,000.
If you work with local organisations whose projects help our communities to thrive, please encourage them to check the fund criteria and apply if they are eligible.
Closing date: 23 June 2025
The Surrey Economic Growth Fund
This is funding to drive growth across Surrey. The Surrey Economic Growth Fund has been created by pooling a range of public and investment streams, such as UK Shared Prosperity Funding from government, into one Economic Growth Fund.
The Fund is administered by Surrey County Council and is now open for applications across three funding streams: Business Growth Grants, Future Surrey Fund, and Innovation Spaces Fund. The Council is seeking bold, innovative ideas that will drive sustainable economic growth across the county and align with Surrey’s strategic priorities.
Closing date: the current round of applications is open until 31 May 2025. Other rounds may follow.
Start your application for funding from the Surrey Economic Growth Fund here.
Accelerated Knowledge Transfer Competition – Innovate UK
Innovate UK has opened a new round of its Accelerated Knowledge Transfer Competition (AKT4) offering support for projects aimed at addressing drug and alcohol addiction. The initiative will fund short, targeted collaborations between eligible research institutions and business partners.
Each project can receive a grant of up to £35,000 to support interventions that develop or evaluate innovation with potential impact on treatment, recovery, harm reduction or prevention for those affected by addiction.
Closing Date: 11am 2 July 2025
Apply here: Competition overview – Accelerated Knowledge Transfer 4 (AKT4) Addiction – Innovation Fun
Adobe Express £1,000 Grant
From now until August, 2 business owners a month will win £1,000 and mentoring from Adobe Express and Enterprise Nation.
All you have to do is share a creation you have made by using the templates in Adobe Express. It could be a social post, flyer or logo for your brand, upload it and complete the application for to be in with a chance of winning.
Closing date: until August 2025
Apply here: Adobe Express Brand Builder | Win £1,000 for your marketing strategy
AXA StartUp Angel Competition
The AXA Startup Angel Competition has been created to support entrepreneurs hoping to realise their business ambitions. The contest offers a variety of prizes to would-be businesses from across the UK to help them through the next phase of their startup journey.
There are six opportunities to win in 2025. Two winners will receive the top prize of £25,000 to fund their business idea. These winners will also be awarded mentoring from the AXA Startup Angels and business insurance for a year.
There are also four runners-up prizes featuring over £18,000 of media, mentoring and exposure. Each runner-up will receive a profile on their business in The Standard, mentoring with a member of The Standard team, plus VIP access to SME XPO 2026.
Closing Date: 6 July 2025 (23:59 hrs)
Apply here: Startup Angel
NatWest Accelerator Pitch Competition
NatWest has announced a £1 million competition to support small business growth in the UK. The NatWest Accelerator Pitch invites entrepreneurs to submit a 60-second video outlining how financial support would aid their expansion.
Selected entrants will compete in live events, starting with a final in Manchester in July, followed by a London event later in 2025. Five finalists at each event will deliver a 10-minute pitch to a panel of industry experts, who will assess their business models, growth strategies and the potential impact of the prize money.
The competition is open to UK businesses with up to £1 million revenue, registered in the UK and trading for between one to five years.
Closing date: For Manchester, the closing date for entries is 5pm 25 May 2025.
For London, entries are coming soon
Apply here: Natwest Accelerator Pitch
Future Leaders Fellowships
Future Leaders Fellowship (FLF) support talented people in universities, businesses, and other research and innovation environments.
They also allow universities, research institutes, independent research organisations and businesses to develop their most talented early career researchers and innovators or to attract new people to their organisations.
The aim of this competition is to:
- Support ambitious research and innovation to tackle difficult and novel challenges.
- Support excellence in innovation, across interdisciplinary boundaries and sectors.
- Develop, retain, and attract the next wave of research and innovation leaders.
Working with a host organisation a Future Leaders Fellow will receive at least four years of funding to pursue an ambitious programme of innovation.
Applications will open on 23 June 2025 and close on 5 November 2025 at 11am.
More information can be accessed at the IUK website.
The UK Games Fund Content Fund
The fund offers financial support to UK-based independent studios developing commercial games-for-entertainment. Backed by the UK Government, the initiative aims to help companies scale up, attract investment and generate employment in the creative industries.
Grants will range from £50,000 to £150,000. The funding can be used to cover staff and contractor costs directly involved in hands-on development activity.
The scheme targets established games studios operating in the UK. Applicants must be able to demonstrate how the funding would provide clear additionality to their business growth plans and facilitate further investment.
Closing date: expressions of interest can be made at any time
Apply here: Home – Content Fund
Greener Homes Alliance Development Loans
Homes England and Octopus Real Estate have launched the second phase of the Greener Homes Alliance, providing discounted development finance to small and medium-sized (SME) housebuilders. The initiative supports the construction of energy-efficient homes across England.
A total of £150 million is available. Loans range from £2 million to £20 million. Interest rate reductions of up to 2% are available for developers meeting environmental and social criteria. Eligible applicants include SME housebuilders and developers operating in England.
Closing date: Applications can be made at any time
Apply here: Greener Homes Alliance | Octopus Capital
Co-operative Enterprise Loans
Co-operative and Community Finance is offering loans of between £10,000 and £85,000 for new or existing co-operatives across the UK to assist with the expansion, setup, or development of a co-operative enterprise.
Loans will only be made to economically viable enterprises that are democratically owned and controlled organisations registered in the UK.
Closing date: Applications can be made at any time
Apply here: Co-op Loan Fund – Unique lending: to co-ops, from co-ops
Surrey Hills Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) Grants
The Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) programme provides grants to farmers and land managers in the Surrey Hills for one-off projects to make improvements to the natural environment, climate change mitigation, cultural heritage and public access on their land.
Closing date: March 2026
Apply here: Surrey Hills Farming in Protected Landscapes FiPL
The Workplace Charging Scheme
The Workplace Charging Scheme provides support for organisations towards the cost of installing up to 40 electric vehicle chargepoint sockets at their sites.
The scheme covers up to 75% of the total costs of the purchase and installation of EV chargepoints (including VAT), capped at a maximum of:
- £350 per socket
- 40 sockets across all sites per applicant – for instance, if you want to install them at 40 sites, you will have 1 socket available per site
All chargepoints must be installed by an OZEV authorised installer.
Closing Date: 31st March 2026
Apply here: Before you start –
That’s all for this month. Good Luck and let me know how you get on!
Renée
Business support in Surrey
If you can’t see anything in this month’s roundup that suits your specific needs, check out our Support Directory, or contact our team of experts via our Business Support Form.
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