The programme is led by Innovate UK, on behalf of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).
It has invested £130 million over three years across three city regions: West Midlands, Greater Manchester and Glasgow City Region.
The distinctness of the Innovation Accelerator programme was in enabling each city region to shape and design their funding portfolio based on their local growth strategies and research and development (R&D) strengths.
A new model for regional innovation
The decision-making boards included representatives from the ‘triple helix’ of local government, academia, and industry, who collaborated to develop a plan with the strongest potential for positive impact.
The regional partnerships worked in collaboration with DSIT and Innovate UK to align their local strategies to national strategies and identify support which could unlock further potential.
The pilot programme’s learnings and successes are now informing the new £500 million UKRI Local Innovation Partnerships Fund (LIPF).
It is set to unlock further economic growth in many more regions across the UK.
Strong emerging impact
Significant impacts are already emerging:
- the Innovation Accelerator portfolio of funded projects have reported around £240 million of realised private co-investment
- there are nearly 550 additional full time equivalent jobs as a result of the support
- the pilot has demonstrated how enabling local leaders to shape innovation funding can catalyse collaboration and investor confidence across regional ecosystems
Dean Cook, Executive Director for Place and Global at Innovate UK, said:
The Innovation Accelerator pilot programme set out to show how city region leadership can work in partnership with UKRI and central government to catalyse growth in high-potential innovation ecosystems.
The programme was built on a simple hypothesis: that places understand their own R&D strengths and assets best, and that national government can help local leaders connect those strengths into wider opportunities.
After three years of delivery, we’re seeing innovations flourish, significant co-investment realised, new products and services reaching the market, and hundreds more high-value jobs created.
The learnings from this programme are now shaping the £500 million UKRI Local Innovation Partnerships Fund.
It’s an exciting moment for impactful co-creation between local and national partners in pursuit of long-term economic and social benefit for all.
Innovation in action
The pilot has supported 26 locally-led projects across a diverse range of sectors, from health and quantum technologies to clean energy and digital innovation.
Examples include:
West Midlands: HealthTech innovation preventing surgical errors
The West Midlands Health Tech Innovation Accelerator supported development of iCount, a device designed to prevent life-threatening surgical errors.
Developed by local doctors Dr Aditi Desai and Dr Kiran Desai, the technology uses a physical docking system and artificial intelligence (AI) to track and count surgical swabs in real time.
This reduces human error, improving patient safety and lowering NHS costs.
Greater Manchester: revolutionising low-carbon homes
The Future Homes project, led by the University of Salford in partnership with major housebuilders, is working to reduce energy consumption in new and existing homes.
Its Energy House 2.0 testing facility allows energy-efficient technologies to be tested under controlled, repeatable conditions, a capability unique on a global scale.
Glasgow City Region: transforming financial regulation
The Financial Regulation Innovation Lab, led by the universities of Glasgow and Strathclyde, is driving innovation in financial regulation.
One supported innovation, from Inicio AI, uses conversational AI to help individuals’ complete income and expenditure forms, reducing stress, identifying unclaimed benefits and supporting affordable repayment options.
Building on success
The government is now building on the pilot’s success through the UKRI LIPF, investing up to £500 million to empower more regions to drive innovation-led growth through strong local ‘triple helix’ partnerships.
The Innovation Accelerator programme has shown that when local and national leaders work together, innovation ecosystems can flourish, delivering economic growth, high-value jobs and solutions to major societal challenges.