Small business grants for women in the UK: which schemes are open in 2026

Small business grants for women in the UK come from a small number of dedicated schemes, the largest being Innovate UK's Women in Innovation Awards at up to £75,000, alongside a grant competition for women in Northern Ireland and smaller microgrants available across the UK. Like any grant, the money generally doesn't need to be repaid, as long as you meet the scheme's eligibility criteria and use it for its intended purpose. These schemes exist because women still face a gap in business funding. Women lead around 19% of UK small and medium sized businesses with employees, according to the government's Longitudinal Small Business Survey 2025, and teams made up entirely of women founders receive just 2% of equity investment across the wider market, according to the British Business Bank.

This guide covers each grant currently available to women led businesses in the UK, how much it offers, who can apply and when it opens. It also explains which schemes suit sole traders and new businesses, the funding routes that have worked well for women founders even though they aren't grants, and how to give your application the best chance of success.

Which grants can women led small businesses apply for in 2026?

Most grants for women run as annual or periodic rounds with fixed application windows, so when a scheme opens matters just as much as how much it offers. Here's where each one stands as of November 2026.

Innovate UK Women in Innovation Awards

• Amount: grants of up to £75,000, plus a tailored package of business support.

• Who can apply: women founders or co founders of a UK registered micro, small or medium sized business at the late stage start up phase, with a project in advanced manufacturing, digital and technologies, or life sciences.

• Status: the 2025/26 round closed on 4 February 2026, and the next round had not been announced at the start of November 2026.

This is the largest grant in this guide, and it's highly competitive. Only single applicants can apply, so you submit the application yourself rather than as part of a partnership with other organisations. The last round opened at the end of November 2025, so it's worth signing up for updates from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) to hear as soon as the next round goes live.

Female Founders Grant Competition (Northern Ireland)

• Amount: grants of up to £35,000 each, with around 10 grants expected in the latest round, plus a business mentor.

• Who can apply: women based in Northern Ireland with an innovative business idea, whether you're an individual at the idea stage or an established business exploring a new product or market.

• Status: the latest round opened on 8 December 2025 and closed on 27 January 2026.

Women in Business NI runs the competition with Techstart Ventures, and the grants come from a proof of concept fund backed by Invest Northern Ireland. Every eligible applicant is invited to pitch, which makes it more accessible than schemes that shortlist on paper alone.

CatalyseHer microgrants

• Amount: grants of up to £5,000, awarded through a pitch competition at the end of a free two month programme. The money can't be used for staff wages.

• Who can apply: women founders, co founders or CEOs of a UK registered business or HMRC registered sole traders, where the business is under five years old with revenue below £2 million, in any sector.

• Status: the fourth cohort closed in September 2026, and future cohorts have not yet been confirmed.

CatalyseHer is run by INCO and funded by the Visa Foundation. The programme is delivered remotely across the UK, so it suits founders who want practical training and a realistic shot at a smaller grant, rather than competing for a large innovation award.

Can sole traders and new businesses get a grant for women?

Whether you can apply as a sole trader or a brand new business depends on the scheme, since several require a registered company with a minimum trading history.

• CatalyseHer accepts HMRC registered sole traders as well as limited companies, as long as the business is under five years old.

• The Northern Ireland Female Founders Grant Competition accepts individuals who only have a business idea, as well as established businesses.

• The Women in Innovation Awards are aimed at a UK registered business that has already moved beyond the earliest start up stage.

If you're outside Northern Ireland and haven't started trading yet, your options are more limited. That's where a government backed start up loan, covered in the next section, is often the more practical route.

What funding routes work well for women founders besides grants?

Because dedicated grants are scarce and competitive, many women founders fund their business through routes that aren't grants but have a strong track record of backing women.

Start Up Loans, run by the British Business Bank, are personal loans for business purposes rather than grants, but they've been one of the most widely used funding routes for women. Since 2012, 40% of recipients have been women, compared with around 20% of businesses without employees being women led. The rules changed on 1 April 2026, raising the fixed rate from 6% to 7.5% and extending eligibility to businesses trading for up to 60 months, up from 36 months.

The Investing in Women Code is a government led commitment signed by more than 300 banks, investors and finance providers, including most major UK retail banks, to improve how they support women founders. It isn't funding in itself, but it's worth asking whether a lender or investor you're approaching has signed it. In 2025, signatories' venture capital deals backed a team with at least one woman founder 33% of the time, compared with 25% across the wider market.

New money is also moving into investment for women led businesses. The Women Backing Women Fund of Funds reached a £130 million first close on 31 March 2026, backed by Barclays, the British Business Bank, M&G and Nationwide. You can't apply to it directly, since it invests in UK venture capital funds run by investment teams founded by women or made up of women and men, but it should mean more equity investment reaching women founders through those funds over the next few years.

Where can you find more grants and support for women in business?

Grants that are open to any small business are often more plentiful than those restricted to women, so it's worth searching both. The government's Find a Grant service lets you filter every live national scheme by business type and eligibility, and local councils and growth hubs often run smaller grants that are only listed on their own websites. Our guide to government grants for small businesses covers the main national schemes open to all small businesses, including those with no gender criteria.

Women's business networks are also a useful source of funding leads, since many share grant and competition opportunities with members before they're widely advertised. The British Business Bank keeps a list of established UK networks and mentoring programmes, including the Female Founders Forum, She Means Business, Business Women Scotland and the British Association of Women Entrepreneurs. If you're in Northern Ireland, Women in Business NI runs the Female Founders Grant Competition alongside its wider support.

How can you improve your chances of winning a grant for women?

Grants for women are competitive, so a well prepared application that matches the scheme closely stands a far better chance than a general pitch sent to every opportunity.

• Check the sector, location, business age and ownership rules before you start, since the Women in Innovation Awards, the Northern Ireland competition and CatalyseHer all reject applications that fall outside their criteria.

• Prepare your core material in advance, including your business plan, recent accounts and a short pitch, because several of these schemes only open for a few weeks at a time.

• Be specific about how much you need, what the money will pay for and what it will let your business achieve that it couldn't otherwise.

• Show evidence of traction, such as revenue growth, customer numbers or partnerships, since panels want proof that your business can make good use of the funding.

• Sign up for alerts from UKRI, Innovate UK Business Connect and the scheme's own website, so you hear about the next round as soon as it opens rather than after the deadline.

• Join at least one women's business network, since members often hear about local grants and competitions first.

Fund your business with a small business loan through Capitalise

If a grant window is closed, you don't meet a scheme's criteria, or a grant only covers part of your costs, a small business loan can fund your plans on your own timeline. With Capitalise, you can compare small business loans from our panel of 130+ lenders through one application and a dedicated funding specialist will help you prepare your application and talk you through each offer.