There are many different types of research grant to apply for depending upon the size of your company and the reasons for the grant application.

Nearly all grant applications relating to revenue (staff spend) require you to demonstrate the levels of innovation to qualify for the grant. This is simply expressed as how the product will be different to that on the market at the moment. A grant application that reads “we need to out-perform our competitor in Devon” will have no chance of success as the Government would then be using taxpayer’s money to drive another UK firm out of business!

Another key piece of jargon when applying for a grant is the TRL level at which you are now and plan to be at the end of the project. The TRL is the Technology Readiness Level, which ranges from 1 to 10. “1” would be equivalent to an untested but probably very ambitious idea and 10 would be a product on sale in the market today. Grants are almost universally aimed at progressing innovative products along this scale so it’s important to match where you are to the expectations of the grant scheme you are applying for. So, a Research Council grant might be ambitious is it progressed from TRL 3 to 6, but a SMART scheme may typically be focussed on moving from TRL 5 to 8.

More guidance on technology readiness levels can be found on official Government documents from Parliament and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.