Application Process

To help you with the grant application process we’ve provided a high-level overview below so you can understand what to expect at each stage.

Before You Apply

Make sure you’re ready by confirming that you understand the available grants, have estimated your project value, meet our eligibility criteria, and recognise this is a competitive funding process – not all applicants will be successful. Meeting the criteria doesn’t guarantee approval, but it positions you for success.

Information on the types of projects we will consider can be found here, and you must also meet the follow requirements:

  • Your main operational premises must be located in the West Yorkshire region
  • You must have been trading for a minimum of 3 years
  • You must be a predominantly B2B organisation –B2C businesses will no longer be considered
  • You must be an SME with a minimum of 5 employees and up to around 100 full time equivalent employees
  • You must have a minimum annual turnover of >£100k
  • You must show a demonstrable commitment to digital transformation
  • You must be able to present clear project objectives and measurable outcomes
  • You must have the ability to provide match funding
  • If applying for a High Impact Grant you cannot have received one before (but you may apply if you have received an Accelerator Grant previously)
  • If applying for an Accelerator Grant, you cannot have received either of our grants before.

 

Want to put yourself in the best position to succeed? Read our top tips for a strong application

Getting Started

If you believe your business and digital transformation plans meet our criteria, it’s time to start your application. Further information on the stages of the application process can be found below. Before you start the process, please be aware you will be required to share at the point of initial registration:

  • Confirmation that you are the founder, Director or Senior Decision maker of the business
  • Contact details, including name, job title, address, phone number, email address and website address
  • Information regarding any funding received from a public body in the past 3 years (e.g., Minimal Financial Assistance (MFA) / EU De Minimis Aid)
  • Equality & Diversity information (optional)
  • Company legal status (including Company Registration Number and date registered with Companies House)
  • Business sector, description of business activity, age of the business, and VAT status/number
  • Information regarding your main customer base
  • Turnover and number of employees: 2 years ago, current, and projected for 2 years ahead
  • Value and brief description of the project
  • Confirmation of acceptance of the privacy statement.

 

We collect data to manage and monitor the use of grant funding, ensuring full compliance with UK data protection laws. Your privacy is important to us. For more details on what data we collect and why, please refer to our Privacy Statement.

Once you submit your registration and you’re deemed eligible, we’ll guide you through every step of the application process with detailed email updates and comprehensive support materials. Our team is committed to making the process as smooth as possible while ensuring all requirements are met.

Important: We can only fund new projects that haven’t begun. You must have a signed funding agreement from us before making any payments or deposits. Starting work early will invalidate your grant agreement and result in claim rejection.

Application Process
1Registration and Eligibility Checks

You can register for Digital Enterprise via our Client Portal.

The person registering for a grant must be the CEO, Founder, Director, or senior decision maker of the business, this is to ensure the person registering has financial responsibility within the business. We also want to engage with and support the diverse business community we have across West Yorkshire, by collecting equality and diversity data at the registration stage we’ll have a better understanding of the business communities that are aware of Digital Enterprise with the aim of ensuring that the applications we receive are representative of the business community.

Your registration will be accepted if you meet the DE programme’s basic criteria or declined if you don’t and you’ll be notified either way.

Once your registration is accepted, our team will carry out further financial due diligence checks. You may be asked to clarify or provide additional business information to determine your eligibility.

2Preliminary Assessment Call

If your business is deemed eligible, then a short call with one of our Advisors will be arranged. This call is to understand more about your proposed investment, which grant, and what level of Advisor support may be needed if your project is approved.

3Project Information Form

Following the preliminary Advisor call you will be notified which type of support we can offer, and we’ll email you a Project Information Form (PIF) to complete. You will be asked a series of questions about the project, the impact you expect the technology to have on your business, and how it will support the growth of your business.

You should provide as much detail and information as possible, as the PIF will form the basis of the Advisors Investment Appraisal and funding recommendations.

If you feel you would benefit from an impartial discussion with one of our Digital Growth Advisors regarding possible alternative solutions, a call or visit will be arranged to discuss further before you obtain quotes.

4Investment Appraisal and Funding Agreement
Digital Accelerator Grant

For those accessing the Digital Accelerator Grant, once your PIF has been completed and returned, a call or visit will be arranged to discuss your project in more detail and what advice our team can provide.

High Impact Grant

For projects between £25,000 – £100,000, more detailed information such as company accounts and a Business Plan will be required. Further information regarding the procurement process will be discussed, and your Advisor will be on hand to guide you through the process from preparing the tender brief, advertising the project, through to reviewing and evaluating tender proposals.

Appraisal

Your project will be assessed by your Digital Advisor, who will score against a variety of metrics including Digital Transformation, Growth and viability of the business, and Economic impact your project will have. Your overall project score will determine what percentage of funding you’ll receive from Digital Enterprise (up to 50% subject to the cap of £10k for the Digital Accelerator Grant and £35k cap for the High Impact Grant respectively).

Funding Agreement

Once we have all the necessary information and you’ve uploaded the quotes for your project, we will issue a Funding Agreement. The Funding Agreement will need to be signed by yourself and us before you make any purchases in relation to your project. If any purchases or payments are made before the Funding Agreement is signed by both parties, then this will be classed as a retrospective claim and the whole, or relevant part of your grant will be rejected.

5Project Duration

Once the Funding Agreement has been signed by all parties, you can start your digital project. Your Digital Advisor will give an expected completion date for your project, this is typically 3 months from the date of the signed Funding Agreement, but it may vary depending on the size of your project.

Your Digital Advisor will keep in regular contact with you to see how the project is going and what, if any, further support might be needed.

6Making and Processing your Claim

As the Project Completion date approaches, your Digital Advisor will arrange a time and date for Project Completion call or visit. This will be an opportunity to discuss the success of project implementation and to outline the steps to make a claim.

Once your project has been confirmed as complete by your Digital Advisor, you will be issued with a Claim Pack. The Claim Pack will contain all the details and information you need to make your claim. Once you’ve completed your project and your supplier(s) has been paid you’ll need to upload the relevant project invoices and bank statements that list the corresponding payments to our Client Portal in order to submit your claim.

When uploading bank statements, they must show:

  • Account details, bank logo and date of statement
  • Highlighted project transaction(s)
  • Full payment of the invoice(s)
  • Opening balance

Once submitted we’ll review your claim to ensure we have all the necessary information to process your claim as quickly as possible. If not, we may be in touch to ask for further evidence.

Your Digital Advisor will approve your claim, which will then be processed, and payment will be made to you within 5-7 working days.

Top tips for a strong applicationTo help you complete your Project Information Form (PIF) we’ve provided a few hints and tips that will help our Advisors assess your application
Read more
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Our Partners and Funders

Digital Enterprise is funded by the UK Government and supported by the following organisations