Businesses in the Bristol and Bath region are being invited to apply for grants from a special Covid-19 recovery fund.
The University of the West of England’s £1million Digital Innovation Fund is offering between £10,000 and £40,000 to eligible SMEs in Bristol, Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.
It is the second round of funding for the scheme, which was first announced in June, and is open to SMEs in any sector that want to innovate and address new challenges that have arisen from Covid-19.
The fund is available to companies working on research and development projects in a range of industries and will be used to finance 35 per cent of project costs.
Tracey John, director of research, business and innovation at UWE Bristol, said: “We were delighted to receive so many strong applications in round one and were impressed with the calibre of these.
“It was great to see how businesses are continuing to innovate during such challenging times.
“We are excited to go live with a second round, supporting the research and development ambitions of even more businesses across the West of England.”
The scheme is being financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), which helps local areas stimulate economic development by investing in projects that will support innovation, businesses and create jobs.
UWE Bristol said it had now given more £2.5million of grants to businesses in the West of England, creating more than 150 new jobs and over 100 products and services.
Ms John added: “In a time of unprecedented change, UWE Bristol is proud of the role it can play to help transform businesses in the region during the pandemic and beyond.”
The deadlines for applications is November 10, 2020. Visit digitalinnovationfund.co.uk to apply.
