Innovative Bath firms and freelancers with creative technology projects focused on post-Covid renewal and recovery are being invited to apply for grants of between £500 and £5,000.
The grants, which total £20,000, are being offered by The Studio at Palace Yard Mews, Bath Spa University’s enterprise and innovation hub, and are aimed at freelancers, micro-businesses and third sector organisations in the Bath & North East Somerset (B&NES) Council area.
Supported by the university’s strategic Centre for Cultural and Creative Industries, the fund is looking for projects that align with both the city’s planned iSTART (Innovation, Science, Technology, Arts, Research & Teaching) skills and innovation hub and the West of England Combined Authority’s (WECA) five key ambitions for recovery.
Proposals will need to include defined outputs, which can be either research-based or business-led. Outcomes could include, for example, a research paper, a prototype or product, a business plan (which may include paid for consultancy), a marketing strategy (including rebranding, an upgraded website, etc), or profile-raising activity.
Creative technology, in this context, means interdisciplinary projects that work creatively with technology across digital, arts and culture, science and the humanities.
The Studio expects to award two grants of £500, three grants of between £1,000 and £2,000, and three of four grants of between £2,000 and £5,000.
Applications must address at least two of the WECA recovery ambitions, which are:
- Rebuilding business, helping new and existing businesses to survive and thrive
- Getting local people back into jobs that pay above the living wage and offer employment security
- Strengthening inclusion, building an inclusive economy where everyone has the opportunity to achieve their potential
- A green recovery, using changes in behaviour brought about by the pandemic to accelerate transition to net zero carbon
- Renewing places, creating greener, healthier, more vibrant places to live and work.
Submissions can be made via this form. Applicants will need to include a project proposal of up to 500 words, a timetable relating to when the project will be delivered and a bullet-point budget (which can include, for example, staff time, research time, materials, equipment, overheads, marketing, travel).
The deadline for applications is 5pm on January 18. All applicants will be informed of panel decision by February 11 with projects due to start by beginning of March.
The Studio at Palace Yard Mews provides a space for local micro-businesses, Bath Spa University students, academics, and graduates to work on projects and ideas which focus on creativity and technology. It is also a venue to share learning through regular workshops, events and activities which are open to the wider community.
iSTART (Innovation, Science, Technology, Arts, Research & Teaching) is a new skills and innovation hub funded by WECA and planned for 2023. It is a collaboration between B&NES, Bath College, Bath Spa University, and the University of Bath, and aims to make a real difference to the region, especially around the recovery agenda.
