Alumni Start-Up Funding Opportunities

Applications are taken monthly for the UnLtd award, which offers a grant of up to £5000 to budding social entrepreneurs. The Proof of Concept Fund is available for people looking to start a business in Lancashire and is provided by Lancashire County Development Limited. The fund offers non-repayable awards of up to £2000 and is available to a wider range of businesses than the UnLtd fund.

Ewa Witaszek, who graduated with an MA in Creative Arts Consultancy last year, has received both funding awards and attended a business boot camp run by the Enterprise Team. This has enabled her to start a Lancaster and Morecambe based Arts Consultancy, D’Art which held its first event in March. Ewa says:‘I am very grateful for how willingly the Enterprise Team has embraced the idea of giving me the opportunity to apply for the Proof of Concept Fund and UnLtd Award. The services provided are user friendly, especially to people like me, a non-professional creative organiser and fundraiser. As a social entrepreneur I was given the opportunity to become part of a positive system in the community that really helped me to make a commitment to success. I feel that others are willing to invest in me, too. This keeps me going.’

If you are interested in finding out more about Proof of Concept or UnLtd funding, or to register interest in the Boot Camps or other Enterprise initiatives email enterpriseteam@lancaster.ac.uk.

Proof of Concept and UnLtd Funding are administered by the Enterprise Team in Research and Enterprise Services through the Northwest Enterprise Champion Project, part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund.