Launchpad: life & health sciences, Northern Ireland
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £2m for business led projects in the life and health sciences innovation cluster in Northern Ireland.
Opportunity Details
When
Registration Opens
30/10/2023
Registration Closes
13/12/2023
Award
MFA strand: single organisations only. Your project’s grant funding request must be between £25,000 and £100,000, which can cover up to 100% of costs. CR&D strand: collaborative projects only. Your project’s total grant funding request must be between £150,000 and £1m, which can cover up to 70% of costs depending on business size.
Organisation
Innovate UK
Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, is to invest up to £2 million in innovation projects across the three Launchpad competition strands that target the innovation cluster in Northern Ireland.
The aim of this competition is to support outstanding innovation projects led by businesses. Your business must be active or growing work activities in the life and health sciences innovation cluster in Northern Ireland.
This Launchpad competition supports the Government’s goals in the Levelling Up White Paper. The projects will contribute to Northern Ireland’s ambitions for its life and health sciences cluster.
This competition is split into three strands:
- Launchpad: life and health sciences, Northern Ireland, Round 1 Collaborative Research and Development (CR&D)
- Launchpad: life and health sciences, Northern Ireland, Round 1 De minimis or Minimal Financial Assistance (MFA)
- Launchpad: Northern Ireland, Cluster Management
It is your responsibility to ensure you submit your application to the correct strand for your project. You will not be able to transfer your application and it will not be sent for assessment if it is out of scope.
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To lead a project in the MFA strand, your organisation must:
- be a UK registered micro, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME)
- be active or growing your work activities in the life and health sciences innovation cluster in Northern Ireland
A business can lead on only one MFA strand application for this competition.
To lead a project in the CR&D strand, your organisation must:
- be a UK registered business of any size
- be or involve at least one grant claiming micro, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME)
- collaborate with other UK registered organisations
- be active or growing your work activities in the life and health sciences innovation cluster in Northern Ireland
To collaborate with the lead in the CR&D strand, your organisation must be one of the following UK registered:
- business of any size
- academic institution
- charity
- not for profit
- public sector organisation
- research and technology organisation (RTO)
A business can lead on only one CR&D strand application for this competition, but can be included as a collaborator in any number of applications.
If an organisation is not leading any application, it can collaborate in any number of applications.
If you apply to the MFA strand of this competition, as well as this CR&D strand, each project must be clearly distinctive and separate. We will monitor closely for this separation if you are awarded funding in both competition strands.
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For the MFA strand, your project must:
- have a total grant funding request of between £25,000 and £100,000
- last between 6 and 12 months
- intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
- start at the earliest on 1 April 2024
- end by 30 April 2025
For the CR&D strand, your project must:
- be collaborative
- have a total grant funding request of between £150,000 and £1 million
- last between 6 and 18 months
- intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
- start at the earliest on 1 April 2024
- end by 31 March 2026
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The aim of this competition is to support outstanding innovation projects led by businesses. Your business must be active or growing work activities in the life and health sciences cluster in Northern Ireland.
The geographical requirement is set to align this competition to the Government’s goals in the Levelling Up White Paper.
Your project must focus on innovation in life and health sciences. Your project must lead to increased investment into research and innovation. It must contribute to growing business activities and economic impact in the cluster.
Your proposal must explain how your team and project will contribute to equality, diversity and inclusivity (EDI) in the cluster.
We reserve the right to fund a variety of projects across different durations, locations, themes and across one or more of the following:
- biomarker discovery and validation
- medical technology devices
- translation or validation of precision medicine approaches
In support of the Government’s Levelling Up goals, we also reserve the right to prioritise projects that:
- are shorter in duration
- significantly advance innovation in life and health sciences
- are led by businesses already based in the innovation cluster
- have greater levels of activity outside the Greater South East
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Your project can focus on one or more of the following:
Diagnostics, therapeutics and biomarkers
- multi-omics
- medical imaging
- liquid biopsy
- biomarker or genetic testing
- diagnostic or therapeutic development
Data, digital and medical devices
- point-of-care testing
- wearable or ambient sensors
- clinical trials decision support
- augmented reality
- digital health
Innovations in healthcare service delivery
- health service productivity
- integrated care platforms
- remote rehabilitation
Your project can also consider the following enabling areas:
- artificial intelligence, machine learning, quantum
- advanced therapies, novel formulation or delivery
- regulation or ethics
- supporting innovation in skills development
These lists are not exhaustive. Where you can show your proposal fits within the scope of this Launchpad competition you can focus on other themes.
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Innovate UK held an online briefing on Tuesday 7 November: click here to watch the recording.
If you would like help to find a project partner, contact Innovate UK KTN’s Health team.
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In considering the eligibility of your proposal you are encouraged to review The Department for Economy (Northern Ireland): 10x Economic Vision.
Further information about the innovation cluster was provided in the online briefing event on 7 November: click here to watch the recording.