UK grant funding specialists
Unlock non-dilutive capital for your innovation. We handle the complexity of grant applications so you can focus on building the future.
Nine quick questions, no email required. Know in a minute whether a grant is worth your time.
Won for clients
“The standout for me was how quickly they got it. They did their homework on an idea that spanned several technical fields, and the bid they wrote was compelling and coherent. It was the least stressful grant application of my long career.”
Grant funding won by our team
Per-engagement success rate
Grant applications won
Typical grant award, up to £2m collaborative
Our per-engagement success rate is above 90%. On the individual applications GrantUp writes it is above 80%. Both figures are based on work where we accepted the engagement. Every enquiry is pre-screened for funder fit, impact potential and technical credibility, and we turn projects away when the fit is not there, so the figures reflect the work we chose to run, not every company that enquired.
£190m+ is the cumulative grant funding won by the GrantUp team for clients across UK and European programmes.
A grant is the only funding that pays for your R&D without taking a share of the company. Used well, it changes what your next equity round looks like.
Awards run from £100k to multi-million pound collaborative competitions. Money that pays for the science rather than the pitch deck.
Non-dilutive means non-dilutive. No board seats, no liquidation preference, no repayment. You own what you build.
A peer-reviewed grant award is third-party proof that assessors you don't employ believe the technology works.
Reach your next technical milestone on grant money and negotiate your priced round from a stronger position.
Grants pay for the work up front and R&D tax relief returns cash on the spend afterwards. Compare the R&D tax claim types, estimate your entitlement and read the FAQs.
Experts, not software
A growing number of “grant platforms” hand you a template and ask you to fill the gaps. Assessors are working scientists and engineers, and they can tell. Every GrantUp application is researched, argued and written by subject-matter experts who have won these awards themselves, then torn apart in internal review before it goes anywhere near a portal.
How we workWhat you get that a platform cannot give you
£190m+
Grant funding won by our team
100's
Grant applications won
>25x
Average ROI for our clients
Figures reflect the cumulative track record of the GrantUp team, in GBP.
GrantUp has been winning competitive, peer-reviewed innovation grants for UK and European companies for years, across Innovate UK grant competitions, UKRI research councils, Horizon Europe and sector-specific programmes.
The same consultants who wrote those winning applications write your Innovate UK, Horizon Europe and UKRI applications too. The science, the assessor psychology and the scoring criteria transfer directly across programmes.
How we run every engagement
Grant deadlines are unforgiving, so the way a consultancy is run matters as much as the writing itself. These are our operating commitments on every project, in writing, before you pay anything.
Every project is staffed with a lead writer matched to your technology plus a second specialist who scores the draft against the published criteria. Nothing rests on one person's judgement or availability.
You get every draft date, review window and internal deadline at kick-off, with an internal submission target that sits ahead of the funder deadline, never on it.
Costings, headcount, intervention rate and total project cost are checked against your finance form by a second pair of eyes, then signed off by you in writing.
Direct email to your lead writer throughout. If a call ever has to move, it is rebooked within one working day, and anything unresolved escalates to a director the same day.
The fee is quoted before any work starts, with no percentage of the award. For qualifying companies, a no-win-no-fee option is also available. If a bid is unsuccessful we review assessor feedback line by line and support a resubmission at reduced scope and fee.
Every enquiry is pre-screened for funder fit, impact potential and technical credibility before we quote, and we cap live applications per writer per round. Projects that do not meet the bar are declined on the first call, which is how our success rate stays high and your budget stays out of the bin.
Grants are the lowest cost capital a UK business can raise, no equity, no repayment, but Innovate UK, UKRI and Horizon Europe competitions are unforgiving, and most first-time applicants are screened out on avoidable issues.
Our specialist team of grant writers has won these competitions themselves. We apply that assessor's-eye perspective to every application we write, so your innovation gets the funding it deserves.
See how we deliver winning resultsHand your Innovate UK or Horizon Europe application to our writers. We build the full narrative, technical case, project plan and finance forms, and write it for you.
Learn moreAn ongoing partnership where we plan, manage and deliver your multi-year grant funding strategy across Innovate UK, UKRI and European programmes.
Learn moreAward management, quarterly reporting and claims support so your team can stay focused on delivery while your project stays fully compliant.
Learn moreDeep life sciences expertise
Our writers hold PhDs and postdoctoral experience in the life sciences. We translate preclinical data, regulatory pathways and reimbursement strategy into the language Innovate UK and NIHR assessors reward, from feasibility right through to scale-up.
Our process
A free consultation to pressure-test your project against funder criteria and map the right competition, scope and deadline.
Our specialist writers interview your team, then shape the innovation, risk and project plan the way assessors score it.
Full drafting of the project summary, technical narrative, finance forms and supporting documents.
Multiple internal review rounds against the competition brief, submission support, and a feedback-driven resubmission plan if needed.
UK grant directory
Innovate UK, UKRI, Horizon Europe, ESA, defence and regional funds in one place, updated continuously from the funders and filterable by sector, stage, region and award size. Free to browse, no email required.
Innovate UK, UKRI and Horizon Europe fund grants across dozens of schemes. We start from your technology and match it to the programme most likely to fund it.
Innovate UK
CR&D competitions, Launchpads and Innovation Loans
UK Research and Innovation
EPSRC, BBSRC, MRC and NIHR research funding
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Horizon Europe
EIC Accelerator, Pathfinder, Transition and EIT calls
European Space Agency
Space technology and downstream applications
Advanced Research + Invention Agency
High-risk, high-reward programmes
Aerospace Technology Institute
Aerospace R&D co-funded with industry
Eurostars
International R&D-performing SME collaborations
UK Defence Innovation (formerly DASA)
Innovation for defence and security challenges
Innovate UK and Horizon Europe back innovation wherever it happens. From biotech and AI to advanced manufacturing, creative industries, fintech, food, transport and clean energy, we help you find the right programme and build the application that wins it.
Biotech, medtech, diagnostics and digital health funding from Innovate UK, NIHR and Horizon Europe.
AI, quantum, semiconductors, photonics, cyber and robotics funding for technically challenging projects.
Clean energy, advanced materials, manufacturing and circular-economy funding from Innovate UK and UKRI.
Creative R&D, fintech, transport, maritime and food-system funding for UK innovators.
“GrantUp offered excellent advice, leading to us winning an Innovate UK Smart Grant with a score of 98%.”
“GrantUp provided clear guidance, support and review of our application and we wouldn't hesitate in recommending them.”
“The GrantUp team are excellent. They are proactive in suggesting grants to go for and honest if they don't think an application is right for us. That has saved us time and money.”
“They understood the science immediately. We didn't have to teach our own technology to our grant writer, which meant the EIC Accelerator narrative was strong from the first draft.”
“The most valuable part was the honesty. We were told which Horizon Europe call to target and which to skip, and that focus is the reason we were funded.”
“Working with GrantUp turned an ESA bid we dreaded into a structured project with clear deadlines, and everything was submitted with time to spare.”
“The GrantUp team were excellent. With their expert support, we were successful in securing grant funding for our business.”
Trusted partner
GrantUp is an official partner of SETsquared, the university enterprise partnership behind the UK's top-ranked startup incubation network (Bath, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Southampton and Surrey). SETsquared ventures are supported by GrantUp with grant funding and R&D tax relief.
GrantUp is an official partner of Grow London Local, part of London & Partners, the Mayor of London's growth agency. London's small businesses are referred to GrantUp for grant writing and R&D tax relief support.
GrantUp is an official partner of Stotles, the public sector opportunities platform, where GrantUp supports businesses competing for government contracts and funding.
Practical guidance on Innovate UK, Horizon Europe and the wider UK grant funding landscape.
Which software work qualifies for R&D tax relief and which does not: the advance in computer science test, technological uncertainty, and how to evidence a software claim HMRC will accept.
Read the full guideHow to complete the HMRC additional information form for R&D tax relief: who must file it, what each section asks for, how many projects to describe, and the mistakes that get claims removed.
Read the full guideHow the UK territorial restriction affects R&D tax claims: which subcontractor and externally provided worker costs qualify, the narrow overseas exemptions, and how to restructure a claim.
Read the full guideTalk to us about your grant funding plans and we'll help you make it happen through effective, results-driven grant writing.
