The Creative Catalyst competition is offering grants of up to £50,000 and a package of tailored support to small businesses in the creative industries sector.
Fully funded by UKRI, this competition is designed to support untapped innovative businesses and increase investment in creative talent with a combination of funding and project development assistance. The competition is part of the Creative Catalyst, which seeks to de-risk innovation in the creative industries and help businesses grow.
Creative Catalyst 2024 opened on 23 January 2024 and closed on 6 March 2024. Below are the key things you need to know about this competition: who is eligible, how much funding you can access and how to apply.
Thinking about applying for this competition? Our Coaching and Strategic Grants Review services let you harness GrantTree’s decades of grant-winning expertise alongside detailed feedback from an active Innovate UK assessor explaining how to increase your chances of success.
To learn more about how GrantTree can help you secure funding from the Creative Catalyst 2024 competition, just get in touch.
Am I eligible for this competition?
To make things easier, we’ll look at the eligibility criteria for your project and your organisation separately.
Your project
Your project must:
- Have total costs of no more than £50,000
- Start between 1 August 2024 and 1 October 2024
- End by 31 March 2025
- Last between 3 and 6 months
You must carry out all of your project work in the UK and intend to exploit all the results from that work in the UK also.
Your organisation
To lead a project, your organisation must
- Be a UK-registered micro or small business
- Not have previously received Innovate UK funding
- Be from or support the creative sector
- Have demonstrable ambition for growth
- Engage with Innovate UK Edge to maximise growth opportunities
- Have operations and a project team in the UK
How much funding can I access?
This competition is providing up to £50,000 in grant funding. Unlike many grants, awards from Creative Catalyst 2024 cover 100% of project costs.
Grants are awarded as Minimal Financial assistance (MFA). Public bodies are allowed to award up to £315,000 to an organisation over a rolling three-year period.
As such, Innovate UK needs to understand what other public funding your organisation has received so that you don’t exceed the MFA limit.
How do I apply?
The application is split into four sections:
- Project details
- Application questions
- Finances
- Project Impact
Project details is unscored and consists of five areas.
Application questions consists of 13 questions, seven of which are scored.
The Finances section is where you detail your proposed project costs, organisation details and funding details.
Project impact isn’t scored but provides Innovate UK with valuable background information about what impact you believe your project will have.
Maximise your chances of success with grant-winning expertise
Creative Catalyst 2024 offers companies that are in and support creative industries up to £50,000 in grant funding.
If you’re currently preparing or planning to prepare an application, GrantTree’s grant-writing experts can empower you with the tools and insights you need to give your submission the best possible chance of success.
Our Strategic Grants Review Service delivers two rounds of detailed, actionable feedback from a current Innovate UK assessor on how to strengthen your application. The feedback is easy to implement and highly tailored to the competition you’re applying to.
Meanwhile, our Coaching Service is a collaborative offering where a veteran grants writer with experience in your industry works with your team to prepare a compelling, eye-catching application, equipping your people with the skills the writer has honed after years of preparing winning submissions. You’ll also receive a round of detailed feedback from an active Innovate UK assessor, helping you take the final step towards success.
To learn more about these services and whether they’re right for you, just get in touch. We’d be delighted to help!
