Pre-incorporation Funds

Any future funding calls will be announced here. If you have a potential commercialisation opportunity in the meantime, please speak to the tech transfer / commerclialisation team at your university. 

The overriding principle is that the funding should be used for the purpose it is awarded i.e. to advance the commercialisation of university research.

You should make sure that it is clear in your application how the costs submitted relate to the commercialisation objective. The Guidance for Applicants provides a little more detail and your technology transfer contact should be able to advise.

Once you have read through the guidance, please contact your Technology Transfer / Research Commercialisation team to discuss your application and get a copy of the application form. 

Once a call has closed the applications will be checked for compliance and distributed to a review panel, comprising external experts with knowledge of innovation and technology transfer and representatives from partner universities, to score in accordance with the guidance. A meeting of the review panel will then be held for moderation of the scoring and this will be followed by a funding decision panel at which those projects that will receive funding will be confirmed.

There are two possible outcomes for each application. These are: award approved or award not approved. If your application is not approved this time it can be resubmitted to one of the future rounds.

A decision letter will be issued by the project team. This will be sent to you, your technology transfer contact, and your university Northern Accelerator lead. In the event that an award is being made the letter will also be copied to relevant contacts in your research office and department.
Please see the application guidance for information on timescales.

It may be necessary for the project team to receive a formal acceptance of the offer of award. This will be made clear in the letter you receive. Northern Accelerator funding will be made available in line with your university’s standard processes. Likewise any procurement or recruitment that arises from this funding award should follow your university’s standard processes.

Funding must only be used for the purposes outlined in your application (which will be replicated in the award letter). The transfer of funding will be against invoices raised following actual spend within the terms of the award (again via your university’s standard processes) and approved by the project team.

You should discuss your alternative options with your technology transfer contact.

The application panel is particularly looking for projects that have potential to spin-out as new companies and those applications will be given priority. Large licensing opportunities will still be considered.

Applications will be accepted from Durham, Newcastle and Northumbria Universities. This activity is funded as part of the In-TUNE project, a collaboration comprising
Durham, Newcastle and Northumbria universities and CPI (Centre for Process Innovation). It is part-funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, supported by North of Tyne Combined Authority and Durham County Council.

If you are from one of our other partner universities and have a potential commercial opportunity from your research, please speak to your university’s technology transfer team as they may be able to signpost you to other sources of funding.