This document provides a monthly digest of funding opportunities and support for UK creative, digital and design businesses. It outlines various public funding calls from Innovate UK, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Creative England, and Horizon 2020. These calls include support for cyber security collaborations, energy sector feasibility studies, and media production. The document also lists knowledge exchange programs, private investment funds, and upcoming events to help businesses connect with funding resources.

1. Creative, Digital & Design
Business Briefing
A digest of useful information for UK businesses seeking
funding and support, updated monthly
April 2016
@KTN_Creative

2. Brought to you by the following
organisations:

3. If you think there’s something that we've missed…
please let us know: cdd@ktn-uk.org

4. Contents
• Public funding calls
• Horizon 2020
• Other public funding
• KTN & other events
• Public investment / private financing
• Launching a new business?
• Non-financial support for your business
• Training & skills

5. Public funding calls
Key feature: Innovate UK and the Department for Culture, Media and
Sport is jointly investing up to £0.5m to help UK companies establish
new Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs) in the area of cyber
security. The funding is aimed at supporting collaborations between
HEIs and SMEs.
Scale: up to £500K
Closes: The final deadline for proposals will be 11 May 2016 but it is
strongly recommended to apply as soon as possible.
More info on: _connect
Cyber Security KTP

6. Public funding calls
Key feature: Innovate UK is investing up to £1.5m in technical feasibility
studies to encourage new entrants to the energy sector and stimulate
the adoption of disruptive technologies. In order to encourage novel and
radical solutions, projects must be led by an SME whose main
business lies outside the energy sector.
Opens: 28 March 2016 Closes: 4 May 2016, 12:00
More info on: innovateuk.org
Energy Game Changer

7. Public funding calls
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships
Key feature: A scheme to help businesses innovate and grow by
linking them with a university and a graduate to work on a specific
project. Each KTP is a three-way partnership between a business, an
academic institution and a graduate. The academic institution employs
the recently-qualified graduate who works at the company. The
graduate, known as the ‘associate', brings new skills and knowledge
to the business.
A KTP is part-funded by a grant. You will need to contribute to the cost
of the supervisor and the salary of the associate.
2016 deadlines are: 11 May, 6 July, 7 September & 2 November
More info on: innovateuk.org

8. Creative England Production Fund
The Creative England Production Fund is targeted at feature films with
budgets of up to £2 million from up-and-coming talent or from
established directors looking to experiment with innovative
approaches. The fund is particularly interested in projects from
regionally-based filmmakers or those which have a strong regional
voice.
The fund is looking to support around three to five features per annum
over the next four years, with production awards of up to £200,000 per
project.
More info at creativeengland.co.uk
Public funding calls

9. Public funding calls
Human Dimensions of Cyber Security
Key feature: This EPSRC call is looking to support academic
researchers, businesses and government users to develop around six
collaborative, international and problem-driven projects which address
the human dimensions of cyber security.
Scale: up to £5m
Closes: 8 June 2016
More info at: epsrc.ac.uk

10. Public funding calls
Nesta Impact Investment Fund
Key feature: An equity investment fund investing in social ventures with
innovative products or services that are addressing some of the UK’s most
pressing challenges. Investments are made in areas that tackle:
• the health and wellbeing of an ageing population
• the educational attainment and employability of children and young people
• the social and environmental sustainability of communities.
Scale: between £150k - £1m
Closes: on-going
More info on: Nesta Investments

11. Public funding calls
Interactive Healthcare Programme
Creative England has announced the extension of its Interactive
Healthcare Programme, pledging £750k for digital companies outside
of London to develop innovative healthcare technology and solutions.
Key information:
- Programmes will run in the North West, West Midlands and
Yorkshire & Humber
- £250,000 will be available via investments of up to £50,000 per
application
- Funding will support the development of innovative concepts or
prototypes using digital technology to improve patient care and health
services
More info on: creativeengland.co.uk

12. Public funding calls
Vocational Learning Technology Fund
Ufi Charitable Trust is currently inviting applications to its Vocational
Learning Technology Fund.
The aim of this investment programme is to offer early-stage funding
of up to £50k to organisations that are looking to develop new
services or improve access to and delivery of adult learning through
the imaginative use of digital technology. This programme will
provide funding and support to help ventures in developing their
ideas into a more robust digital product or service.
Closes: 12 May, 9am
More info on: ufi.co.uk

13. Public funding calls
Invest NI £5K Innovation Voucher
An Innovation Voucher provides funding to small and medium sized
businesses to access academic skills and expertise from one of the
39 registered knowledge providers throughout Northern Ireland and
the Republic of Ireland listed at www.investni.com/innovation.
The aim is to improve the innovation capability of your business and
to build links between public sector knowledge providers and the
business community.
Application deadline: 22 April, 3pm
More info on: investni.com

14. Horizon 2020 (H2020)
Key feature: The H2020 programme is the major funding opportunity
for R&D initiatives across Europe running up until 2020. There is a
strong emphasis on creative industries, design and digital technologies.
Upcoming calls:
Full details about workplan for the Information and Communication
Technologies Call are available here. Calls within the H2020 ICT work
plan that are relevant to the creative and digital industries include:
ICT 19: Media Content and Convergence – Deadline 8 November
2016
ICT 4: Smart Anything Everywhere Initiative - Deadline 8 November
2016

15. Horizon 2020
Upcoming calls:
ICT 8: 5G PPP Convergent Technologies – Deadline 8 November
2016
ICT 11: Collective Awareness Platforms for Sustainability and
Social Innovation – Deadline 25 April 2017
ICT 20: Tools for smart digital content in the creative industries -
Deadline 25 April 2017
Further information on H2020 Work Programmes can also be
found here.

16. Horizon 2020
A list of all upcoming Knowledge Transfer Network events offering
information and support in connection with H2020 funding
programmes is available here.
KTN Guide to Horizon 2020 and Other European Funding for
the Creative Industries
This is a short guide to help you submit a proposal for the Horizon 2020
funding programme (H2020), as well as describing other European
Commission funding sources. It provides a brief overview of how to
apply, things to think about, where to get support and useful links.
You can also keep up to date with the latest info via our Creative,
Digital and Design portal and by joining our dedicated LinkedIn group.

17. H2020 SME Innovation Associate
Key feature: The H2020 SME Innovation Associate is a new pilot action
under the EU Research and Innovation Framework Programme 'Horizon
2020’ that will support 90 European SMEs and Start-ups to recruit post-
doctoral research associates from other countries to explore an innovation
business idea.
The following costs are eligible under this programme: salary of the
researcher for a period of one year; relocation cost for the researcher up
to a maximum total of €5000; travel and subsistence costs related to the
training.
Deadline to apply: 30 June 2016
More info at ec.europa.eu

18. Other public funding
• Creative Europe - here you can find relevant information concerning
funding opportunities within the Creative Europe programme.
• Arts Council of Wales – offer a selection of arts grants for creative
professionals and organisations.
• Wellcome Trust Arts Awards – offer two levels of funding to
encourage collaboration between arts and science.
• Creative Scotland Open Project Funding - This fund supports the arts,
screen and creative industries, with projects that help them explore,
realise and develop their creative potential.

19. Other public funding
• Funding Central and Finance Funder - Online guide to over 4,000
grants, contracts and other forms of finance: fully searchable based on
finance type, scale and your geographical location; especially good for
businesses seeking charitable or grant funding.
• Creative Skillset - Creative Skillset directs collective investment through
the Skills Investment Fund to create new and innovative training in
priority skills and in-demand roles to ensure growth in the UK’s Creative
Industries.
• Creative Industry Finance - Delivered by Creative United and funded by
Arts Council England, this programme is designed to assist creative and
cultural enterprises in securing access to loan finance from £2,500
upwards.

20. 11:00-16:00, Thursday 28 April 2016 – Innovation Birmingham
Campus, 6 Holt St, Birmingham Science Park, Birmingham B7 4BP
Are you looking to grow your digital business? Please join us in
Birmingham for the April Regional Digital Business Drop-In event with
hosted by the Knowledge Transfer Network.
This event is for creative, digital and design companies looking to access
funding and support to grow. There will be presentations from Innovate UK
and the KTN on the types of support and funding available the event is
followed by a networking lunch.
Further info and registration details available here.
KTN Events
Regional Digital Business Drop-In

21. 09:30-12:00, Thursday 5 May 2016 – Digital Catapult Centre, 101
Euston Rd, London NW1 2RA
The Knowledge Transfer Network will be organising an informal information
sharing Business Drop-in session in London. The session is designed to
support digital companies and learn more about Innovate UK, the Digital
Catapult and other organisations and businesses that have opportunities
and support for UK based businesses.
Representatives from across Innovate UK’s programmes will highlight a
range of upcoming funding opportunities for digital companies, researchers
and academic institutions working across a diverse range of sectors.
Please note: If you are interested in giving a 5 minute presentation, slots
are given on a first come first served basis at the event.
Further info and registration details available here.
KTN Events
Digital Business Drop-In

22. 10:00-16:00, Thursday 26 May 2016 – Digital Catapult Centre, 101
Euston Rd, Kings Cross, London NW1 2RA
This event will see eighteen quick-fire pitches from high potential entrepreneurs to
a panel of industry experts, journalists and investors, as well as representatives
from the contest challenge partners: Sharing Economy UK, Nesta, Kingfisher,
Crossrail, Peterborough City Council and Cranfield University. This £180K contest
will award up to £30K to each successful business, to fund the development of
their solutions and trial their technology with the respective challenge partner.
This event will give you the opportunity to gain insider insight into the latest
innovations in the sharing economy and get a preview of the developments before
they are publicised more widely.
This is an open event for anyone interested in digital innovation within or outside
the scope the sharing economy. The event is also an opportunity to gain insight
into the support on offer from Innovate UK. By attending you will make valuable
new connections with professionals that share the goals of commercialising
innovative ideas.
Further info and registration details available here
Digital Innovation in the Sharing Economy Final Event

23. KTN Entrepreneur’s Forum is a group in the North of England formed by
Freshly Squeezed in collaboration with the Knowledge Transfer Network with
the aim of bringing local innovative businesses together to meet, share ideas
and collaborate. There are a number of events taking place from
February to April in Sheffield and Liverpool.
The Entrepreneurs' Forum events are intended to promote and support
entrepreneurship and innovation in the North and will feature discussion
forums with case studies from fellow entrepreneurs, opportunities to learn
from other professionals as well as share inspiring stories and have
questions answered in real-time.
The Funding Surgery events are monthly one-to-one drop-in sessions
offering free advice on a range of business finance including grants, loans
and investment.
Places are limited so register now to avoid disappointment.
KTN Entrepreneurs' Forum in the North - Meet, Share
Ideas & Collaborate

24. Think Startup Conference 2016 – Luton, 20 April
#StartYourWeekend with KTN – London, 22 April
LeanConf 2016 – Manchester, 23 April
Creativeworks London Festival – London, 29 April
Eco-Design and Product Sustainability in the Transport Sector –
London, 17 May
Sónar+D – Barcelona, 16-18 June (KTN discount available)
IFB 2016 Creative and Digital Week – Liverpool, 26 June-1 July
Other events

25. Public Investment
Arts Impact Fund
Key feature: Funded by Arts Coucil England, Bank of America Merrill Lynch,
Esmee Fairbairn Foundation and Nesta, the Arts Impact Fund is a new
£7million initiative set up to demonstrate the potential for social investment in
arts. It offers repayable finance to arts organisations working in England that
can show how they are sustainable, have great artistic ambitions and have a
positive impact on society in at least one of the following areas: citizenship &
community, young people & educational attainment, health & wellbeing.
Scale: between £150k - £600k
Closes: on-going
More info on: Arts Impact Fund

26. Public Investment
Creative Skillset Film Skills Fund
Key feature: The Creative Skillset Film Skills Fund is dedicated to
supporting film-specific training. You can benefit directly through funding for
training - grants of money towards the costs of courses.
Craft and Technical Bursaries – up to £800 for film professionals working in
eligible craft and technical departments to spend on training
International Scholarships – up to £5,000 for experienced film professionals
to attend intensive and high-level developmental programmes in the UK or
overseas
Management and Leadership Bursaries – up to £1,000 for film professionals
to spend on training and professional development
More info on creativeskillset.org

27. Accelerator Programmes
Property Innovation Labs (Pi Labs) is a venture capital platform to
investing in early stage ventures in the property tech vertical. This 13-
week mentor led programme accelerates the growth of exciting
property tech start-ups.
Startupbootcamp FinTech provides funding, mentorship, London office
space and access to a global network of investors and VCs, for up to
10 selected FinTech startups. Applications open 21 March & close
26 June.
TrueStart’s ‘The Collection’ is a six months startup accelerator
programme focussed on the retail and consumer sector supporting
companies in the early stages of their development. Applications
deadline 24 April.

28. Accelerator Programmes
DigitalHealth London Accelerator programme is for digital health
businesses that would benefit from better engagement with the NHS
and the wider health sector, in order to refine and develop products and
services. The year-long programme to be run over 3 consecutive years
will provide support to around 80 (20-30 in each year) small and
medium sized businesses. Deadline for 2016/17 applications 12
noon, 25 April.
TD Ventures is a new business accelerator with equity investment
available to facilitate the growth of new digital companies. The
programme has a total fund of €5 million to invest. Tradedoubler will
invest up to €500,000 in a single company in exchange for equity in the
business. Early-stage and start-up firms operating in the digital sector
in the UK, France or Germany may qualify for support through this
programme.

29. Private financing
Edge Investments is the specialist investment house focused on the
creative industries sector, in particular media and entertainment. Launched
last month the Edge Creative Enterprise Fund is a £40m fund raised, with
UK Government support, to invest in high growth companies in the creative
industries.
Balderton has a track record of helping entrepreneurs build substantial
businesses – with more $250m+ exits in the past five years than any other
European venture firm
Connect Ventures, London – invest in mobile, internet and digital media
businesses; invest at the early stage and focus on seed investments;
investment size ranges from £200K-£600k
Index Ventures, London, San Francisco & Geneva – venture capital firm
making investments in information technology and life sciences companies,
since 1996 they have teamed up with technology entrepreneurs in more
than 30 countries

30. Private financing
Notion Capital, London – invest in B2B Cloud & SaaS companies who have
sustained 100% Year-over-Year growth; investment areas include adtech,
communications and collaboration tools, ecommerce, enterprise software,
fintech and security; portfolio raised over £200m in 2014
Hoxton Ventures, partners with founders seeking to invent new market
categories or transform large, existing industries; their sweet spot is
internet, mobile and software startup investing - up to $2m
The Business Finance Guide, devised for businesses and advisers by the
ICAEW Corporate Finance Faculty together with the British Business Bank
and is supported by 17 major professional, membership and representative
organisations; outlines sources of finance available to businesses – ranging
from start-ups to SMEs and growing mid-sized companies
The UK Business Angels Association is the national trade association
representing angel and early-stage investment in the UK.

31. Private financing
Better Business Finance is an excellent tool for identifying the right type of
finance at all stages of a business as well as identifying providers who can
help. This section provides a searchable directory of information about the
members of the UK Business Angels Association, what services they
provide and how to contact them.
British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association provides an
explanation of different types of financing and other resources for
entrepreneurs.
The AngelCo Fund is a £100m investment fund with objectives to back
promising UK businesses at all stages of development and in most
sectors, provided they qualify as an SME.
If you are you a project promoter based in the EU, and want to reach
potential investors worldwide, register your project in the European
Investment Project Portal (EIPP).

32. Other financing mechanisms
Crowdfunder.co.uk – UK’s largest crowdfunding network having launched
1000’s of projects and raised over £2m, platform launched by KEO digital
and partners include Nesta and Creative England
Funding Circle – an online marketplace which allows savers to lend money
directly to SMEs; as of February 2014 Funding Circle has facilitated £223m
in loans to SMEs
Crowd2Fund – a crowdfunding platform designed to enable a range of
funding options, from loans to equity
SyndicateRoom – equity crowdfunding platform for investing in UK startups
backed by experience business angels
CrowdShed - covers rewards, lending and donation-based crowdfunding
opportunities, focused on creative, academic, charity and cause-based
projects.

33. Launching a new business?
• Tech City UK offers advice and support to start-ups looking for guidance
in and around London. It has launched its Digital Business Academy.
Tech City UK can also endorse visa applications to help recruit talent to
Britain.
• Innovate UK - IC tomorrow connects start-ups and SMEs with leading
commercial partners and investors, through funded contests, events,
and strategic matchmaking opportunities.
• Enterprise Europe Network is a key instrument in the EU's strategy to
boost growth and jobs. Bringing together around 600 business support
organisations from more than 60 countries, EEN help small companies
seize unparalleled business opportunities in the EU Single Market.
• Seedcamp is a London based accelerator that provides startups with
seed money, mentorship, office space, support over a year long
programme.

34. Launching a new business?
• The British Business Angels Association can help put you in touch
with relevant business angel investors.
• Aimed at creative industries businesses seeking funding and
investment from both traditional and non-traditional sources, the
‘Routes to Finance’ guide is a new initiative by the ICAEW’s
Corporate Finance Faculty, supported by the Creative Industries
Federation and 52 organisations in the UK’s creative economy.
• As the membership body for providers of enterprise support services
in London, Capital Enterprise and its members provide a wide range
of support services including advice, training, mentoring, accelerator
programmes, specialist technical expertise, networking, soft loan
finance and incubator accommodation to both pre-start and trading
entrepreneurs and small businesses in all 33 London Boroughs.

35. Launching a new business?
• Transmit Start Ups provide financial support and mentoring to
creative and digital entrepreneurs that would not normally be
available via traditional banking relationships
• AIM Start Up Loans - Government supported start-up loans for the
Creative Industries.
• The Open Data Institute runs a start-up programme that helps start-
ups build business models around open data
• The Path Forward features The Path - a practical and interactive
methodology to assist entrepreneurs take a valid idea from concept to
valuable business in 12 months.
• European Startup Resource Page - a Techstars idea to help founders
of European startups save time and internal resources by supplying
some useful templates, valuable resources and good examples.

36. Are you an existing business seeking
non-financial advice or support?
• Nesta’s creative business mentor network offers ambitious
businesses looking to grow one-one mentoring with some
of the creative digital sector’s most successful leaders
• The UKTI offers advice to help with exporting
• Tech City UK can help advise on inward investment
• The Digital Catapult can help you showcase your business

37. Are you an existing business seeking
advice or support?
• AngelList – helps source angel investors
• Capital List - is an investor-introduction service available
free of charge to London based SMEs as part of the
Capital Accelerator Programme
• Interactive Scotland is a Scottish Enterprises project
providing specialist expert advice to all Digital and
Creative Businesses across Scotland
• Grant Thornton provide a specialist service for R&D tax
relief/ credits claims

38. Industry specific support
• The Digital Catapult is working with Innovate UK to research,
develop and deliver datasets and lessons for industry from the
Building Performance Evaluation programme through the
development of the Building Data Exchange. This is a platform
built to provide easy access to data, and stimulate the
crossover of digital technology in the built environment in order
to create a proactive community that drives rapid
improvements in the performance of buildings. More info here.
• Over the next few months Ogilvy Labs is embarking on its
Retail Semester to ‘exhibit knowledge’ into five identified
‘pillars’: In-Store, Online, Payments, Operations and
Engagement.

39. Personal Data and Trust Network
The network aims to build and nurture a community that brings
together industry, the public sector, funders, research organisations
and innovators to support the UK in becoming the global leader in
trust and responsible innovation with personal data.
For more information and to join, visit pdtn.org.

40. Training and skills
• Training in Open Data from the Open Data Institute
• Digital Business Academy – via Tech City
• Digital Project Management – via @IABUK
• Digital Acceleration – via @hyperisland_uk
• Digital training – via @Econsultancy – e-marketing courses

41. Useful reports/ market research
• Innovate UK - Additive manufacturing: mapping UK research
into 3D printing
• KTN – A Guide to Horizon 2020 and Other European Funding
for the Creative Industries
• Imperial College / Citi – Releasing The Flow of Digital Money
• Imperial College / Citi – Digital Money Index 2016
• Deloitte – Blockchain: Enigma. Paradox. Opportunity

42. Useful reports/ market research contd.
• Nesta – Business Insights 2016
• The Open Data Institute - The Open Banking Standard
• Ofcom / Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) - Innovation in
UK consumer electronic payments
• Samsung – Smart Things Future Living