How to fund a digital product in Greater Manchester (2026 guide)

If you run a business in Greater Manchester and want to build a digital product, the money is out there. It just rarely arrives as one cheque. The projects we see get funded usually combine three things: a grant or voucher to reduce risk early, tax relief on the development work, and a loan or investment to scale.

This guide covers the routes open to Greater Manchester businesses in 2026, what each one pays for, and how to shape a project so it fits.

The funding stack most projects use

Think of funding in layers rather than as a single application.

Layer	What it pays for	Typical size	Examples
Free support	Advice, introductions, bid reviews	Free	GC Business Growth Hub, Innovate UK Business Connect
Grants and accelerators	Feasibility, prototypes, pilots	£20k to £100k+	Innovate UK competitions, Digital Catapult accelerators, Made Smarter
Tax relief	A share of qualifying R&D spend	Depends on spend	R&D tax relief (merged scheme or ERIS)
Loans and equity	Scaling, hiring, launch	£25k to £5m	NPIF II, GMCA Business Investment Fund, SEIS and EIS investors

A small grant often unlocks the rest. It proves the idea to investors, and a funded prototype makes a much stronger case for a loan or equity round.

Free support in Greater Manchester

GC Business Growth Hub. Run by the Growth Company, the Business Growth Hub gives free advice to businesses of any size and sector, with advisers across all ten boroughs. GMCA awarded £7.5m of UK Shared Prosperity Fund money to the service. It is the best first call if you are not sure which route fits. The Growth Hub also keeps a list of suggested suppliers that businesses on its programmes can work with. Third Eye Open is on that list for design and development.

Innovate UK Business Connect. A free national service that connects businesses with funding, experts and partners. It also runs Business Growth (formerly Innovate UK EDGE), which gives innovation-focused SMEs one-to-one support from regional specialists. Some of its programmes are currently only open to existing clients, so ask early.

Loans and equity for Greater Manchester businesses

GMCA Business Investment Fund. Loans or equity from £200k to £5m at market rates, for businesses creating jobs in Greater Manchester. It expects private match funding and signing up to the Good Employment Charter. Digital and creative businesses are named as a focus. Apply by email to the GMCA investment team.

Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II (NPIF II). A £660m British Business Bank fund launched in March 2024. In the North West you apply direct to the fund managers:

• GC Business Finance and River Capital: loans of £25k to £100k
• FW Capital: loans of £100k to £2m
• Praetura Ventures: equity up to £5m

We could not confirm which of these funds are taking applications at the time of writing. Check with each manager before you prepare a pitch.

National grants that Greater Manchester businesses win

Innovate UK. Smart grants, the open competition many businesses relied on, have been paused since January 2025. The government has named the £130m Growth Catalyst as the new route, focused on growth sectors such as AI. We cover what to apply for instead in our guide to Innovate UK funding in 2026.

Digital Catapult. Runs funded accelerators for digital twins, AI and immersive technology. In 2026 that included the Digital Twin Adoption Accelerator, worth up to £100k per project, and an industry challenge accelerator worth up to £75k per SME. See our guide to funding a digital twin.

Made Smarter. If you are a manufacturer or engineering business, Made Smarter Adoption offers up to 50% match funding, capped at £20k, towards new digital technology or specialist advice. It also offers funded digital interns and a leadership programme. It is open to SME manufacturers across England, including the North West.

Tax relief on the development itself

If your project involves solving a genuine technical uncertainty, the work may qualify for R&D tax relief. Since April 2024 most companies claim a 20% expenditure credit under the merged scheme, and loss-making, R&D-intensive SMEs can claim more through ERIS. Equity investors can also get income tax relief through SEIS and EIS. We set out the numbers in our guide to R&D tax relief and SEIS/EIS for software.

How to shape a project so funders say yes

Funders back projects, not ideas. In our experience the strongest applications share a few traits:

• A clear problem with evidence. Show who has the problem, how you know, and what it costs them today.
• A scoped first phase. A feasibility study or prototype with a fixed budget is easier to fund than a full platform.
• Milestones you can prove. Each stage should end with something a funder can see: research findings, a working prototype, a pilot with real users.
• A credible team. Funders look at who will design and build the product, not just who had the idea.
• A route to market. Explain who pays and how the product grows after the funding ends.

This is where a design and engineering partner helps. A discovery sprint before you apply turns an idea into a scoped, costed plan with a prototype you can show assessors.

Where to start

1. Book a free conversation with the GC Business Growth Hub or Innovate UK Business Connect.
2. Write a one-page summary of the problem, the product and the first phase.
3. Check live competitions on the Innovation Funding Service and Digital Catapult's opportunities page.
4. Cost the first phase properly, including design, build and testing.
5. Line up your match funding before you apply.

If you want help scoping or costing a funded project, talk to us. We have designed and built grant-funded and accelerator projects, and we can work to the milestones a funder expects.