Space West Newsletter - March 2025

Bath Digital Festival is set to return in 2025 to transform Bath into a vibrant hub of innovation, creativity, and cutting-edge technology. More than just a local event, this curated festival aims to provide a platform for the entire South West region to explore, learn, and celebrate advancements in the digital and tech industries.

Space Symposium is the premier event uniting global space professionals from all sectors, providing a unique platform to explore critical space issues, foster dialogue, and drive innovation across the space industry.

Join the Department for Business and Trade and ADS Group Ltd at the 40th annual Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, USA

International conference, aiming to bring together academia, industry and other stake holders, such as fund-managers, scientific editors, and policy makers.

Space For Growth

Popular awareness of the direct impact that the space sector has on our daily lives is increasing and the UK Space Conference agenda for 2025 will reflect this. In July innovators and experts from a surprising range of sectors are convening because they understand the role that space plays in the next wave of human technological innovation. Join us to understand why working and investing in the UK Space Sector is critical for the next decade of renewal and economic growth. 

The Defence Simulation, Education & Training (DSET) conference is scheduled from 8 to 10 July 2025 in Bristol, UK. This hybrid event offers a platform for military, government, academia, and industry professionals to collaborate on advancements in military simulation and training. The agenda includes a Wargaming Festival, specialist seminars, and the British Army Security & Cyber Conference. Attendees can participate in person or virtually, with registration required.

The European Space Agency (ESA) plans to issue an invitation to tender for the European Launcher Challenge next week. This initiative aims to strengthen Europe's independent access to space by supporting new entrants in the launcher sector. Companies are required to co-fund their proposals. Bids will be evaluated around midyear, with contracts expected after ESA's ministerial meeting in November 2025.

ESA is accepting applications for its Graduate Trainee Programme 2025. The pre-selection and interview process for shortlisted candidates will occur between March and May 2025, with final selections made by ESA in June. The program offers opportunities for recent graduates to contribute to ESA's missions and projects.

Space4Climate has announced the call for Market Breakthrough Funding Phase 2, with a deadline of 12 April 2025. This funding aims to accelerate the adoption of satellite-based climate services in sectors such as sustainable finance, greenhouse gas emissions monitoring, and agriculture. UK-registered entities of any size are eligible to apply, either individually or as part of a collaborative project team. Projects should start no later than 1 June 2025 and end by 31 December 2025.

The European Space Agency (ESA) offers funding for six-month feasibility studies known as 'Kick-Starts'. ESA will fund 75% of each Kick-Start project, up to €75,000 per contract. These studies can lead to larger-scale projects and pilots. Current opportunities include:

-Space for Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture: Funding for teams developing services integrating technology solutions for smart cities and urban agriculture.

-Space Supporting Environmental Claims: Funding for teams developing services that provide support and evidence for environmental claims and labeling.

-Space for Insurance Technology: Funding for teams developing services integrating technology solutions for the insurance sector.

The University of Bath's Department of Physics is hosting Eureka 2025! Physics for Security, a three-day international conference from 7 to 9 July 2025 at the Apex City of Bath Hotel. This event aims to unite academia, industry, and stakeholders such as fund managers, scientific editors, and policymakers to discuss emerging sciences and nascent technologies with significant potential. Topics will include specialty optical fibres, quantum photonics, two-dimensional materials, functional and quantum devices, lasers, nano and photonic platforms, sensing technologies, and biosensing methods. The conference will feature talks, poster sessions, an industrial exhibition, and social events like a trip to Stonehenge and a welcome dinner. Subsidised tickets are available, and registration is required by 31 May 2025.

Deadline: Monday, 14 April 2025 - The EC-funded ENFIELD project is offering €1.1M in funding to support 76 researchers through four rounds of exchange open calls. This third call invites individual researchers—ranging from PhD students to senior academics—and research groups to submit project proposals addressing key ENFIELD challenges. Successful proposals will advance AI research and its practical applications.

Deadline: Thursday, 24 April 2025 - Funding is available to support projects that engage the public with science, technology, and facilities backed by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). Eligible applicants must be based in the UK and represent an organisation with certified annual accounts. Proposals should clearly align with STFC’s research areas and include a subject matter expert in an STFC-funded field. The scheme covers project costs up to £20,000, with STFC providing full funding. Projects should last between 12 and 36 months.

Deadline: Open Until Further Notice - The UK Space Agency is offering funding (subject to annual budget availability) to support activities that strengthen the UK space exploration community. Eligible initiatives include community-building efforts, networking opportunities, and participation in relevant conferences or showcases. Applicants must outline how their proposed activities will benefit the UK space exploration community

Deadline: Sunday, 6th April 2025 - The ESA Business Incubation Centre United Kingdom (ESA BIC UK) supports start-ups using space technology or data to drive innovation and business growth. As part of ESA Space Solutions, it offers technical expertise, business support, office space, and funding. Benefits include: Business development support and mentoring, £43,103 in funding, and access to office space and shared facilities. Eligible applicants must be a UK-registered company (less than five years old) with a clear link to space technology or data and have at least one team member based in the UK. 

Deadline: Tuesday, 29th April 2025 - The Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) Open Call for Innovation seeks groundbreaking ideas to address challenges across the Defence and Security sectors, providing the UK with a competitive advantage. This open call invites proposals even where no specific requirement has been outlined, encouraging innovative and disruptive solutions. DASA is particularly interested in ideas that: Improve existing defence outcomes through new or novel approaches. Deliver new or enhanced capabilities using modern techniques or technology. Enhance current capabilities in innovative ways to increase efficiency or effectiveness. While there is no minimum project value, most projects typically receive funding between £250,000 and £300,000.

Deadline: Wednesday, 7th May 2025 - Innovate UK is providing loans of up to £25 million to micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) for late-stage, high-potential research and development (R&D) projects. These loans are designed to support innovations with a clear path to commercialisation and economic impact. Projects should result in new, cutting-edge products, processes, or services, or propose novel applications of existing technologies. Additionally, innovative business models may be supported. Loan amounts range from £100,000 to £2 million.

Deadline: Wednesday, 16th April 2025. UK-registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £3 million to collaborate with Canadian SMEs on joint R&D projects. To lead a project, your organisation must be a UK-registered business of any size, or include at least one UK-registered micro, small, or medium-sized enterprise (SME) that claims grants, or be a Canadian profit-oriented SME. Each collaboration must involve at least one UK-registered SME and one eligible Canadian SME. UK partners can request up to £300,000 in grant funding per project.

The Defence Technology Exploitation Programme (DTEP) is a £16 million programme to boost small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) defence innovation.

West of England Combined Authority are supporting businesses in the region to explore the benefits from the implementation of digital technologies. Providing access to grant funding, bespoke expertise and guidance for your business as well as skills and training.

The European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe’s gateway to space. Its mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.

The Defence and Security Accelerator find and fund exploitable innovation to support UK defence and security quickly and effectively. Check it out for open calls for funding. 

ESA's ARTES Core Competitiveness programme helps European and Canadian industry to develop innovative satcom products, services, systems and partnerships.

The South West Investment Fund is the first in a series of new Nations and Regions Investment Funds being launched by the British Business Bank, and it will deliver a £200 million commitment of new funding to the area. The fund aims to drive sustainable economic growth by supporting innovation and creating local opportunity for new and growing businesses across the South West.

Details on open funding opportunities from the UK Space Agency, the space sector, academic, education and community partners.

• Exploration Science working group support
• ARTES: Invitations To Tender (ESA Workplan Activities) 
• Navigation Innovation Support Programme (NavISP)
• Student support: ESA microgravity programmes
• Responsive Mode Call - Exploration Community Development
• General Support Technology Programme (GSTP)

Opportunities for secondments at NCSC advisor roles for  Radio Frequency security and Private Critical National Infrastructure secondments.

A three-year initiative to boost Future Economy-focused SMEs through aligning grant funding for R&D development with investment from partnerships with credible investor partners

The European Space Agency (ESA) is hosting the ESA Workshop on UK Industrial Participation on 23 April 2025 at their Harwell facility. This workshop will explore opportunities for UK businesses to engage with ESA programmes, with sessions covering legal frameworks, bidding processes, and insights into upcoming funding opportunities following the Council of Ministers 25 (CMIN-25) meeting. The event is open to representatives from UK-based entities interested in learning more about ESA’s industrial landscape and future collaborations. Spaces are limited, and registration is required.

ICOMAT is an ambitious advanced manufacturing company with game changing technology and critically people with the imagination and drive to grow a business that will enable leading OEMs in the Aeronautics, Automotive Space and Defence sectors to significantly reduce the weight and improve the performance and efficiency of their vehicles & products. 

Starion UK, now headquartered in Bath, is keen to recruit the best expertise to deliver space segment and ground segment systems and studies. Whilst there is not currently a recruitment campaign underway, we welcome CV’s from those seeking roles in these areas. 

Space Forge is extraordinarily diverse team of incredibly talented people dedicated to making returnable, reusable orbital factories a reality. From our team lunches to our team ownership, Space Forge is building the company others aspire theirs to be. So if you’ve got the right stuff (and really know your stuff), then why wait?

Looking for a new opportunity and would like to join one of the UK’s most exciting space startups?
Linked are current vacancies with Magdrive. If there isn’t anything that is a perfect fit for you and you would like to make a speculative enquiry, then please send your CV to [email protected]

Babcock provides critical complex engineering services which save lives, support national defence and protect communities. Focussing on three highly regulated markets: defence, emergency services and civil nuclear - Delivering vital services and managing complex assets in the UK and internationally.