Grant application rejected? How to prepare a stronger resubmission
Turn grant rejection feedback into a practical resubmission plan. Learn what to change, how to strengthen evidence and when a different competition makes sense.
Read the full guideUK grant funding specialists
UK innovation grant
writing services.
GrantUp helps UK start-ups and SMEs find innovation grants and prepare competitive funding applications. Our specialist grant writers are engineers and scientists who build your technical case, project plan and budget for Innovate UK, UKRI and Horizon Europe, so you can focus on delivery.
Nine quick questions, no email required. Know in a minute whether a grant is worth your time.
£190m+Won for clients
Sector-specialist writersNot generalists
UK, EU & defence fundersFull funding mix
£190m+
Won for clients
“We had a really great experience working with Nathan Coles. Despite having only two weeks to write the grant, the process was very smooth and well-organised, with very fast turnaround.”
£190m+
Grant funding won by our team
82%+
Per-engagement success rate
100's
Grant applications won
£500k
Typical grant award, up to £2m collaborative
Our per-engagement success rate is over 82%. The figure is based on work where we accepted the engagement. Every enquiry is pre-screened for funder fit, impact potential and technical credibility, and we turn projects away when the fit is not there, so the figure reflects the work we chose to run, not every company that enquired.
£190m+ is the cumulative grant funding won by the GrantUp team for clients across UK and European programmes.
The lowest cost of capital available to you
A grant is the only funding that pays for your R&D without taking a share of the company. Used well, it changes what your next equity round looks like.
Fund the R&D itself
Awards run from £100k to multi-million pound collaborative competitions. Money that pays for the science rather than the pitch deck.
Keep 100% of your equity
Non-dilutive means non-dilutive. No board seats, no liquidation preference, no repayment. You own what you build.
Validate your technology
A peer-reviewed grant award is third-party proof that assessors you don't employ believe the technology works.
Raise at a higher valuation
Reach your next technical milestone on grant money and negotiate your priced round from a stronger position.
Grants pay for the work up front and R&D tax relief returns cash on the spend afterwards. Compare the R&D tax claim types, estimate your entitlement and read the FAQs.
Experts, not software
Specialist grant writers for UK innovation funding
A growing number of “grant platforms” hand you a template and ask you to fill the gaps. Assessors are working scientists and engineers, and they can tell. Every GrantUp application is researched, argued and written by subject-matter experts who have won these awards themselves, then torn apart in internal review before it goes anywhere near a portal.
How we workWhat you get that a platform cannot give you
- • An honest “don't apply for this one” when the fit is wrong
- • A writer who understands your technology, your stack or your device physics
- • Assessor-perspective critique before submission, not after rejection
- • A feedback-driven resubmission plan if the first attempt misses
Our team has delivered
£190m+
Grant funding won by our team
100's
Grant applications won
>25x
Average ROI for our clients
Figures reflect the cumulative track record of the GrantUp team, in GBP.
Where that track record comes from, plainly
GrantUp has been winning competitive, peer-reviewed innovation grants for UK and European companies for years, across Innovate UK grant competitions, UKRI research councils, Horizon Europe and sector-specific programmes.
The same consultants who wrote those winning applications write your Innovate UK, Horizon Europe and UKRI applications too. The science, the assessor psychology and the scoring criteria transfer directly across programmes.
How we run every engagement
The standards you can hold us to
Grant deadlines are unforgiving, so the way a consultancy is run matters as much as the writing itself. These are our operating commitments on every project, in writing, before you pay anything.
A named lead and a named reviewer
Every project is staffed with a lead writer matched to your technology plus a second specialist who scores the draft against the published criteria. Nothing rests on one person's judgement or availability.
A written schedule from day one
You get every draft date, review window and internal deadline at kick-off, with an internal submission target that sits ahead of the funder deadline, never on it.
Independent finance check before submission
Costings, headcount, intervention rate and total project cost are checked against your finance form by a second pair of eyes, then signed off by you in writing.
Reachable people, rebooked within a day
Direct email to your lead writer throughout. If a call ever has to move, it is rebooked within one working day, and anything unresolved escalates to a director the same day.
Upfront setup fee plus a success fee
Grant funding engagements have a minimum upfront setup fee starting from £1,750, plus a success fee payable on award. The scope and success fee are agreed before work starts. We do not take equity. If a bid is unsuccessful we review assessor feedback and discuss whether a resubmission is worthwhile.
Selective intake, every project pre-screened
Every enquiry is pre-screened for funder fit, impact potential and technical credibility before we quote, and we cap live applications per writer per round. Projects that do not meet the bar are declined on the first call, which is how our success rate stays high and your budget stays out of the bin.
We help you successfully apply for grant funding
Grants are the lowest cost capital a UK business can raise, no equity, no repayment, but Innovate UK, UKRI and Horizon Europe competitions are unforgiving, and most first-time applicants are screened out on avoidable issues.
Our specialist team of grant writers has won these competitions themselves. We apply that assessor's-eye perspective to every application we write, so your innovation gets the funding it deserves.
See how we deliver winning resultsPartner with us to unlock grant funding for your business
UK Grant Writing Services
Our specialist grant writers prepare your Innovate UK or Horizon Europe application. We build the full narrative, technical case, project plan and finance forms, and write it for you.
Learn moreGrant Funding Partnership
An ongoing partnership where we plan, manage and deliver your multi-year grant funding strategy across Innovate UK, UKRI and European programmes.
Learn moreGrant Reporting & Claims
Award management, quarterly reporting and claims support so your team can stay focused on delivery while your project stays fully compliant.
Learn moreDeep life sciences expertise
Built for biotech, medtech and digital health founders
Our writers hold PhDs and postdoctoral experience in the life sciences. We translate preclinical data, regulatory pathways and reimbursement strategy into the language Innovate UK and NIHR assessors reward, from feasibility right through to scale-up.
- • Innovate UK and NIHR biotech and medtech competitions
- • Therapeutics, diagnostics, devices and lab tools
- • Regulatory, clinical and commercialisation narratives
Our process
How we win grants
1
Eligibility & strategy call
A free consultation to pressure-test your project against funder criteria and map the right competition, scope and deadline.
2
Technical deep dive
Our specialist writers interview your team, then shape the innovation, risk and project plan the way assessors score it.
3
We write the application
Full drafting of the project summary, technical narrative, finance forms and supporting documents.
4
Review, submit, resubmit
Multiple internal review rounds against the competition brief, submission support, and a feedback-driven resubmission plan if needed.
UK grant directory
The most complete list of UK business grants on the internet
Innovate UK, UKRI, Horizon Europe, ESA, defence and regional funds in one place, updated continuously from the funders and filterable by sector, stage, region and award size. Free to browse, no email required.
- Live UK grant competitions tracked
- 300+Live UK grant competitions tracked
- Rounds with a deadline still ahead
- 120Rounds with a deadline still ahead
- Funding bodies covered
- 40+Funding bodies covered
- Included in our GrantPartner programme
- 37Included in our GrantPartner programme
We write for the funders backing UK innovation
Innovate UK, UKRI and Horizon Europe fund grants across dozens of schemes. We start from your technology and match it to the programme most likely to fund it.
Innovate UK
CR&D competitions, Launchpads and Innovation Loans
UK Research and Innovation
EPSRC, BBSRC, MRC and NIHR research funding
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Horizon Europe
EIC Accelerator, Pathfinder, Transition and EIT calls
European Space Agency
Space technology and downstream applications
Advanced Research + Invention Agency
High-risk, high-reward programmes
Aerospace Technology Institute
Aerospace R&D co-funded with industry
Eurostars
International R&D-performing SME collaborations
UK Defence Innovation (formerly DASA)
Innovation for defence and security challenges
We fund innovation across every sector
Innovate UK and Horizon Europe back innovation wherever it happens. From biotech and AI to advanced manufacturing, creative industries, fintech, food, transport and clean energy, we help you find the right programme and build the application that wins it.
Health & Life Sciences
Biotech, medtech, diagnostics and digital health funding from Innovate UK, NIHR and Horizon Europe.
- Therapeutics & drug discovery
- Diagnostics
- Medical devices
- Digital health
- Bioinformatics
Deep Tech & Digital
AI, quantum, semiconductors, photonics, cyber and robotics funding for technically challenging projects.
- Artificial intelligence & ML
- Quantum technologies
- Semiconductors
- Photonics
- Cybersecurity
Net Zero, Energy & Manufacturing
Clean energy, advanced materials, manufacturing and circular-economy funding from Innovate UK and UKRI.
- Clean energy & storage
- Grid technology
- Carbon capture
- Hydrogen
- Power electronics
Creative, Services & Infrastructure
Creative R&D, fintech, transport, maritime and food-system funding for UK innovators.
- Games & immersive media
- Film, TV & music technology
- Fintech & RegTech
- Transport & mobility
- Maritime & offshore
Biotech grantsMedtech & Diagnostics grantsArtificial Intelligence grantsQuantum Technologies grantsSemiconductors & Microelectronics grantsWireless & Communications grantsAerospace & Space grantsCleantech & Energy grantsCybersecurity grantsRobotics & Autonomy grantsAgTech & Food Systems grantsPhotonics & Advanced Materials grantsAdvanced Manufacturing & Materials grantsCreative Industries & Immersive grantsFood & Drink Innovation grantsFintech & Financial Infrastructure grantsTransport & Mobility grantsMarine & Maritime grants
“We had a really great experience working with Nathan Coles. Despite having only two weeks to write the grant, the process was very smooth and well-organised, with very fast turnaround.”
“Working with Grant Up has been an absolute pleasure. We applied for EIC Pathfinder funding earlier this year, and the support throughout was excellent. Although our application was ultimately unsuccessful, this does not detract from the excellent experience we had with the team. Their expertise, professionalism and support were outstanding, and I would happily recommend Grant Up and work with them again.”
“We engaged GrantUp to support us through the full bid-writing process for a recent Innovate UK funding application, and the experience was excellent from start to finish. Overall, GrantUp made what can be a demanding and complex process feel remarkably well organised and collaborative. We were very impressed with both the quality of the team and the professionalism of the service, and would be very happy to work with them again.”
“Would absolutely work with Anjuli and Thomas again.”
“Our grant writer, Lisa, was a force of nature. Absolutely amazing at articulating value in a way that best showcases our capabilities.”
“We applied for a Pathfinder with GrantUp and Lisa was literally a godsend. She helped us navigate consortium building, requirements, budget calculations and was a great thought partner to make sure our proposal was coherent and our reasoning really came through in the final proposal. She was very responsive and knowledgeable, I'd work with her again in a heartbeat.”
“I would add it has been the least stressful grant application of my long career and we will certainly work with GrantUp again.”
Trusted partner
GrantUp is an official partner of SETsquared, the university enterprise partnership behind the UK's top-ranked startup incubation network (Bath, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Southampton and Surrey). SETsquared ventures are supported by GrantUp with grant funding and R&D tax relief.
GrantUp is an official partner of Grow London Local, part of London & Partners, the Mayor of London's growth agency. London's small businesses are referred to GrantUp for grant writing and R&D tax relief support.
GrantUp is an official partner of Stotles, the public sector opportunities platform, where GrantUp supports businesses competing for government contracts and funding.
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Read the full guideReady to get started?
Talk to us about your grant funding plans and we'll help you make it happen through effective, results-driven grant writing.