The ATI Programme: What Funding is Available?

The Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) Programme is a £3.9 billion partnership between the ATI, Innovate UK, and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). The programme aims to grow the UK’s competitive position in civil aerospace, in order to meet the objectives of the UK Aerospace Technology Strategy, ‘Accelerating Ambition.’

Therefore, the ATI Programme offers grant funding opportunities through the following four strands:

1) The Strategic Programme

This strand comprises of 2 phases and is most suited to larger organisations who wish to access grants over £1 million. Phase 1 is an Expression of Interest competition; it opens monthly and the ATI reviews all applications. Then, if successful, the ATI invites applicants to complete a full stage Phase 2 application.

The next round of the Strategic Programme will open between the 7^th December and the 23^rd December. Find more information, including how to apply, here.

2) R&D Funding for Smaller Businesses

This funding stream will invest up to £8 million in research and technology projects to deliver world-leading aerospace technologies in the UK. An Expression of Interest competition opened on 9^th November and will close on 6^th January.

3) The National Aerospace Technology Exploitation Programme (NATEP)

In contrast to the Strategic Programme, the National Aerospace Technology Exploitation Programme (NATEP) is ideal for smaller businesses. This is because it offers a maximum £150k grant for projects. Additionally, the programme provides a high calibre technical and management resource to help companies accelerate technology development towards market readiness.

Interested SMEs should keep an eye on the NATEP website, in addition to the UKRI Funding finder, for suitable opportunities through this funding strand.

4) International Programme

Finally, the International Programme issues funding calls for joint R&D projects between the UK and other countries. The last advertised call was between the UK and Sweden in April 2020.

More Information

You can find more information on the entire ATI Programme here. Alternatively, please contact us today if you’d like to discuss an innovative aerospace project with one of our advisers.