Innovation Fund

The Enterprise Team has launched a new funding initiative to accelerate knowledge exchange, entrepreneurship, and engagement - strengthening the University's contribution to economic and societal progress.

The Innovation Fund is a single, flexible funding stream designed to support three core objectives:

• Knowledge Exchange: Translating Essex research into real-world impact.
• Entrepreneurship: Supporting ventures led by students and staff.
• Engagement: Enhancing visibility and collaboration with innovation-driven partners.

Funded through our Higher Education Innovation Funding (HEIF) allocation, the aim is to accelerate high-quality industry partnerships, nurture long-term relationships and overall, drive the University’s economic and societal impact.

Why get involved?

Whether you're an early-career researcher, technical professional or an established academic, the Innovation Fund offers a platform to:

• apply your research to practical applications
• access funding to support collaborative industry projects
• build relationships with industry, public sector and social enterprise partners
• enhance the impact and visibility of your work
• co-develop solutions to pressing business and societal challenges
• develop REF impact case study opportunities

What does the Innovation Fund support?

The Innovation Fund is designed to be agile and responsive, supporting high-quality industry partnerships that have the potential to develop into long-term relationships.

The fund is open to support:

• industry collaborations with businesses and organisations
• partnerships with public sector bodies, charities and social enterprises
• commercialisation of academic work, including spinouts and licensing opportunities

Funding eligibility

All project ideas which directly support knowledge exchange activities are eligible for Innovation Fund consideration.

• Grants are flexible and scalable to suit a range of project scopes.
• Projects up to £15k can potentially be fully funded.
• For projects over £15k, any partners will need to contribute a minimum 10% cash contribution (more for larger awards).
• For commercialisation opportunities where there may not be a partner, i.e. launching a spinout with some seed funding, the ‘match funding’ will be the equity the University takes in the spinout.

T-PIKE can help support technical roles with putting together an application, and T-PIKE funding could be used to offer better value to an application.

Dedicated support is available from the Business Engagement Team and Knowledge Exchange Team throughout the process—from project scoping to application to talent recruitment and delivery.

Excluded expenditure

The Innovation Fund cannot be used for:

• overheads (Knowledge Base added costs e.g. estate and indirect costs)
• ERIA payments
• capital projects: buildings, refurbishments, major equipment purchases (as a guide, research councils consider this to be £10k)
• pure research or teaching without external KE partner or commercialisation opportunity
• internal research administration: e.g. REF impact statements

Find out more

Get in touch to discuss a project idea. We’re here to help shape impactful collaborations through the Innovation Fund. Whether you're looking to take on new partnerships or you’ve been approached by an organisation with an idea, the Business Engagement and Knowledge Exchange Teams can guide you through the application process.

Fill in our expression of interest form and a member of the team will get in touch.