Business grants and funding calls
Find out more about our approach to grants, as well as the funds that are currently available.
Our current grants
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SMART: Scotland grants
The SMART: SCOTLAND grant is a research and development (R&D) grants that aims to support high-risk, highly ambitious projects. It's used to conduct feasibility studies.
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Regional selective assistance funding
Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) is a discretionary grant aimed at encouraging capital investment and job creation in Assisted Areas of Scotland.
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Research and development (R&D) grants
Our R&D grants offer a range of support for companies that are looking to research and develop a new product, process or service, or significantly improve an existing one.
Funding calls programme 2023-24
Search new funding calls operated by Scottish Enterprise and other public sector organisations. This list is updated regularly and subject to change. Last updated December 2023.
Value: £ variable
Funded by: Scottish Government
Operated by: Scottish Enterprise, Highlands & Islands Enterprise and South of Scotland Enterprise
This call is open.
There’s £17.6 million available for projects that can develop green heat solutions or have ideas to boost manufacturing and R&D in this area.
The Green Heat Innovation Support Programme (GHISP) provides support through large R&D and capital grant funding, feasibility study support, and CAN DO Innovation Challenge funding.
Value: £ variable
Funded by: Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP)
Operated by: UKRI
This call is open.
Businesses can apply to work with an academic partner to address a particular innovation challenge.
Project costs vary greatly, but typically a small or medium sized business might expect to contribute £35,000 a year and a large company in excess of £50,000.
Value: £ variable
Funded by: European Space Agency (ESA)
Operated by: ESA
This call is open.
Businesses from any sector can apply throughout the year, and the amount of funding may vary according to the project.
The goal of this activity is for the business to develop a new commercial service that uses one or more space asset, such as:
- Satellite communications
- Earth observation
- Satellite navigation
- Human spaceflight technologies
- Other space assets
Value: £ variable
Funded by: Defence & Security Accelerator (DASA)
Operated by: DASA
This call is open.
DASA open call is looking for innovative ideas to improve the defence and/or security of the UK.
Closed funding calls
The following funding calls are closed and no longer accepting applications:
- CO2 Utilisation Challenge - closed 15 January 2024
- Scotland CAN DO Green Heat Retrofit Innovation Challenge - closed 1 March 2024
- Clean Energy Transition Partnership Programe (CETP) - closed 20 March 2024
What are funding calls?
Many of the funds promoted on this page are delivered as funding calls, which not everyone is familiar with. Funding calls:
- Are often delivered in a series of funding rounds that open and close for a fixed amount of time
- Are aimed at supporting businesses with specific projects or activities
- Have clear criteria or outcomes that businesses should meet – such as creating new jobs, creating jobs in target areas, developing green technologies, or implementing socially conscious business practices
- Are competitive – applicants need to show why they should get a portion of the fund and how they’ll meet the specified outcomes. Not everyone who is eligible will win funding, as funds only go to the highest scoring applicants.
Changes to our grants
We’ll still be delivering a few targeted grants, but we’ll also be focusing on helping you find the right grant funding from our partners and external sources.
Our new funding model is simpler and more inclusive. It’s changing the way we support businesses, and will help create jobs and promote a greener economy. We'll be promoting funding calls and grants from across our partner organisations, as well as delivering a few targeted funds of our own.
Outside of our calls and grants, we’re keen to continue talking to you about your projects. We'll do our best to provide a wide range of non-financial support as well as helping you access other funding across the public sector.
Find more grant options at Find Business Support
The grants we’ve listed are our own grants or featured calls from partners that we expect to drive Scotland’s progress towards a greener, fairer economy.
You’ll find a full list of grants, funding calls and other types of funding available across Scotland at the Find Business Support website. These may cover a wider range of sectors, activities and regions.
Go to the Find Business Support website opens in a new window
Other types of funding
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European funding
These funds are typically highly competitive, but can offer big sums to the right businesses. Find out what’s available and how we can help you access it.
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Investment funding
Looking for investors and investment funding? We can help you access a variety of sources of funding.
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Highlands and Islands funding
If your business is based in the Highlands and Islands, you’ll find more relevant support on the Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) website.
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Talk to us
If you’re an established business in Scotland, get in touch to tell us a bit about your business and what you’re planning. We’ll help point you towards the right support.