Supporting Scotland’s SMEs
The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) has launched a new ‘Horizon 2020 SME Engagement Scheme’ in order to encourage greater participation in the framework programme. The programme will enable small and medium sized enterprises to apply for a voucher of between £1,000-£5,000 (~€1,178-€5,890) to assist in the Horizon 2020 application process to receive EU funds. The scheme also allows SMEs to better access Scottish higher education expertise and advice.
Dr Stuart Fancey is the assistant director of research and innovation at the SFC and told Horizon2020projects.com about the ‘SME Engagement Scheme,’ their views on the next research and innovation funding programme and the importance of collaboration between Scottish SMEs and universities.
How important will Horizon 2020 be in the funding of research in Scotland?
Horizon 2020 will be a critical component of the funding of research in Scotland. Our universities and businesses were successful in winning over €400m in the Seventh Framework Programme and we expect that to be matched or exceeded in the period of Horizon 2020. The themes and challenges around which the European Commission has structured the next framework programme to fit well with the Scottish Government’s priorities and our national research strengths are as summarised in our Smart Specialisation Strategy.
How important is collaboration between Scottish universities and SMEs in undertaking research and when applying for research grants?
It is not just important, it is vital that Scotland responds enthusiastically to the change in emphasis from FP7 to Horizon 2020. The Commission has made clear that in the new programme, it wants to see greater economic impact from the investment it is making and it has adjusted the instruments accordingly. This suits our SME-based economy well and our challenge is to ensure a significant take-up of the new SME instrument (as well as SME engagement in Horizon 2020 generally) to help our economy grow through innovation.
What are the SFC’s thoughts regarding the final Horizon 2020 agreement, particularly regarding the reimbursement of costs?
In our early consultations with the university and private sectors, a persistent request was for simplification and acceleration of the EU funding methodology. The announced cost reimbursement structures go some way to satisfy these demands and therefore we welcome them. The agreement more generally is a step forward for Scotland and for Europe. The integration of multiple previous instruments under one Horizon 2020 banner allows for a clearer support structure and we welcome particularly the new SME instrument that are proving of great interest as we explain them to companies across Scotland in our on-going series of briefing sessions.
What is the background to the ‘SME Engagement Scheme’ and how does the SFC hope the programme will increase participation in Horizon 2020?
The Scottish Funding Council recognises the success of the Scottish universities in negotiating the complexities of European funding: forming consortia, making applications and winning funding from framework programmes. Our aim is to leverage that experience and insight for the benefit of SMEs that have not historically been as confident in investing time and money to maximise their participation (and income). The scheme is a simple voucher scheme based on our existing innovation vouchers programme operated successfully for us by Interface. SMEs will be able to apply, with a Scottish university, for up to £5,000 of support to cover the costs of travel to Europe to meet officials, take part in Commission briefings and meet consortium partners. We will also pay for the time of a university to assist the SME in the application process. We hope that this support for the practical work needed to build a strong proposal will help more SMEs take part in Horizon 2020 and very much look forward to helping many SMEs grow their businesses through innovation from European research and development projects.
I would stress that Horizon 2020 is a great opportunity for Scotland and one that the SFC, Scottish Government, Scotland Europa and other agencies are lined up behind to support the ambitions of our businesses and universities.
Dr Stuart Fancey
