£3.4m Scale UK Connect pilot opens to 200 high-growth firms
Applications run until January 2027, with the group of companies starting a year of support in February.
By Daily Oracles News Team1 min read
Companies that want to grow without leaving the UK can now apply to a new government pilot, Scale UK Connect, which will take 200 high-growth firms from next February.
The Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade has put £3.4m into the 18-month national scheme. Each firm gets expert account management, advice on expanding, and introductions to other founders, investors and major funds. The programme is free to join, though places are limited.
To qualify, a business must be registered and based in the UK, have annual turnover and/or investment of at least £2m, employ at least 10 people including founders, and want to scale or expand internationally. The programme's page says applicants complete a registration form and are then assessed against its eligibility and selection criteria.
The support listed there includes a business diagnostic and growth plan, access to specialist expertise, workshops and peer learning with other scale-up leaders, targeted visits to international markets, and help with leadership capability and investment readiness.
Applications stay open until January 2027. The group formally starts in February, followed by 12 months of support, and a final report on the pilot is due in April 2028.
London & Partners is leading delivery, with Tech SY in Yorkshire, TechSPARK in the South West, Pathways Forward in Scotland and partners in Greater Manchester and the West Midlands.
London & Partners also runs Grow London Global, which the government said helped 265 scale-ups export in 2025-26, with £595m in gross value added and more than 6,600 jobs expected. Since January 2024 that programme has also supported 41 businesses outside the capital.
The government said UK tech start-ups raised $17bn in the first half of 2026, more than France, Germany and Sweden combined. The pilot is part of a wider package for entrepreneurs announced in the Budget, which also includes tax and procurement measures for founders and innovative firms.
