Support and funding

One to one, expert consultancy to help find new growth opportunities for small and medium sized businesses.

Our Circular Economy Business Support Service delivers tailored, expert, one-to-one consultancy directly to small and medium sized businesses across all sectors in Scotland.

It’s designed to help companies explore more circular ways of doing business that can result in resource efficiencies, improved profitability, higher quality products, increased customer base and alternative supply chains for your business.

The service is open to businesses and organisations across all sectors in Scotland seeking to develop and/or implement new business models, technologies, practices, products or services that can embed circular economy principles.

What areas are supported?

Zero Waste Scotland support areas that include circular economy business models around sharing resources, modular design, re-use and repair, remanufacturing and reprocessing.

To get a feel for what’s happening in Scotland, take a look at some of the pioneering circular economy projects already up and running.

Our bespoke one-to-one consultancy service can provide support with:

Innovation/opportunities identification
Market assessment
Stakeholder engagement
Business plan support
Lifecycle analysis
Business case development
Commercial case development
Support in identifying funding opportunities
Communications and marketing support
Implementation support

Upon completion of the service, actions recommended to businesses may be eligible for funding – which can be applied for via the Circular Economy Development Grant (e.g. practical development costs including prototyping, lab testing and/or field testing of Circular Economy concepts to generate real-world data).

For projects nearing commercialisation, the Circular Economy Investment Fund is available generally.

How to apply for support

If your business is interested in receiving support or you just simply want to find out more, please call us on 01786 433930 or complete the following form:

A member of our team will work through our assessment process with you and identify the next steps to get involved.

Accelerate growth:

Make the most of a £3 billion business opportunity with expert support and funding.

The Circular Economy Business Support Service, administered by Zero Waste Scotland, offers investment for SMEs based in Scotland and supports work that will deliver circular economy growth.

It is supported by the European Regional Development Fund through the £73 million Resource Efficiency Circular Economy Accelerator Programme.

Circular economy Investment Fund:

Funding the development of new ways of working to help business get ahead in a circular economy.

We are investing £18 million as grant funding to small and medium sized enterprises who are helping to create a more circular economy.

The Circular Economy Investment Fund is a funding opportunity for businesses and organisations in Scotland working in all business and social economy sectors.

We invite proposals from:

Small to medium sized enterprises (less than 250 employees/turnover less than €50 million);
Non-profit organisations (charities and social enterprises).

We are interested in:

Exploring markets for new circular economy products;
Development and adoption of innovative business models for new circular economy products and services;
Development and uptake of innovative technologies, products and services to support a circular economy.

How to apply

If your business or organisation is interested, you should complete the short Circular Economy Investment Fund outline project proposal form.

Fund Page

We will let you know within 30 working days if your proposal has been successful, at which point you will be invited to complete the final part of the application process.

Eligibility and guidance notes are available.

Guidance

To find out more about Scottish companies moving to circular business models with the help of Zero Waste Scotland, read our Circular stories.

Circular stories

Further information:

The Circular Economy Investment Fund seeks to support work that will help deliver circular economy growth.

A circular economy is one that’s sustainable, and eliminates waste as much as possible. It’s an alternative to our current ‘take, make, dispose’ approach and means that products and materials are kept in a high-value state of use for as long as possible.

The Circular Economy Investment Fund contributes to Scotland’s Economic Strategy, which the Scottish Government published in March 2015, as well as the Scottish Government’s Smart Specialisation Strategy, A Manufacturing Future for Scotland – a programme for Government commitment and Making Things Last, Scotland’s circular economy strategy.

This fund comprises support from the Scottish Government and the European Regional Development Fund.

The £18 million Circular Economy Investment Fund, administered by Zero Waste Scotland, offers investment for SMEs based in Scotland and supports work that will deliver circular economy growth. It is supported by the European Regional Development Fund through the £73 million Resource Efficiency Circular Economy Accelerator Programme.

The £18 million Circular Economy Investment Fund, administered by Zero Waste Scotland, offers investment for SMEs based in Scotland and supports work that will deliver circular economy growth. It is supported by the European Regional Development Fund through the £73 million Resource Efficiency Circular Economy Accelerator Programme.

Ready to embrace the benefits of a circular approach to your business?

Speak to our team

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Zero Waste Scotland Limited
Registered in Scotland (SC436030)
Ground Floor, Moray House
Forthside Way
Stirling
FK8 1QZ
Office: 01786 433 930