A portfolio of Liverpool City Region projects is in line to receive £30m from a new £500m national innovation fund.

The projects are seeking funding from the Government’s Local Innovation Partnership Fund but could leverage a further £360m from the private sector, bringing the total investment to around £400m.

Led by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the fund is designed to support the development and scaling of high-potential existing and emerging innovation clusters across the UK.

The Combined Authority is acting as Lead Bidder for the City Region’s submission for funding, with the programme governed through the Local Innovation Partnership Group, made up of representatives from civic institutions, universities, industry, and the social economy. 

Following a Combined Authority-led call for projects before Christmas, the Local Innovation Partnership Group has produced a portfolio of projects. The Combined Authority will work with UKRI to finalise the submission and the projects, with final funding figures due to be revealed in early summer 2026.

Speaking about the shortlist, Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram said:- “Innovation has been central to my vision for the Liverpool City Region from the very start - not as an abstract idea, but as a practical way to build a stronger, fairer and greener economy that works for local people. That’s why we’ve set ourselves an ambitious goal to invest 5% of our GVA into research and development by 2030. Done right, that could unlock billions of pounds in economic growth and support tens of thousands of high-quality, well-paid jobs across our Region. The £30m we’re in line to receive from the Local Innovation Partnership Fund reflects the growing confidence in our Region’s ability to turn bold ideas into real-world impact. By working closely with UKRI and our partners across academia, industry and the social economy, we’ve brought together a strong and credible pipeline of projects that have the potential to be genuinely transformational for the Liverpool City Region.”

The draft shortlist of projects will be submitted to UKRI for review in February 2026, where the project portfolio will undergo a quality assurance process before final selection is completed in March/April 2026.