Innovate UK Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) — NI Top-Up

Invest NI KTP — NI Top-Up

Supports small and growth-minded Northern Ireland firms through knowledge transfer partnerships with graduate development placements.

The Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) programme is a UK-wide initiative delivered by Innovate UK (UKRI) that enables businesses to collaborate with a university or research organisation by embedding a recently qualified graduate as a KTP Associate over a placement of approximately two years. In Northern Ireland, Invest NI and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) contribute a top-up that reduces the cost share for eligible NI-based SMEs to 33% of total project costs, compared to 50% for large companies, making the programme significantly more accessible to smaller businesses.

Two programme types are available: Technical KTPs, which match discipline-specific graduates in engineering, ICT, and construction with relevant projects, and Management KTPs, which address strategic organisational improvements across all sectors. The Invest NI top-up is applied automatically for NI applicants who submit through the standard Innovate UK portal, so there is no separate NI application process. Businesses owned by Invest NI staff are ineligible for the NI funding component. Eligibility follows Innovate UK and UKRI guidance at the applicant level.

Applications are submitted on a rolling basis via the Innovate UK portal with no fixed call deadline at the Invest NI level. The programme is well suited to NI businesses seeking to bring in fresh expertise, modernise processes, or develop a new product or service with the support of a graduate embedded in the organisation. Because the Invest NI and UKSPF top-up means NI SMEs cover only one-third of project costs, the effective leverage on investment is substantially higher for NI participants than for businesses elsewhere in the UK.