CfI: Earlier identification of UK children with SEN

CfI: Earlier identification of UK children with SEN is sponsored by Innovate UK. CfI: Earlier identification of UK children with SEN. Innovate UK competition (ID: 2511).

Funding: £2. 5 million (GBP). Apply via the Innovation Funding Service.

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CfI: Earlier identification of UK children with SEN Organisations can apply for a share of £2. 5m inclusive of VAT to develop innovations that enable earlier, fairer, more reliable identification of special educational needs (SEN) in contexts where existing market solutions underperform or do not operate. Competition opens: Tuesday 23 June 2026 Wednesday 5 August 2026 11:00am UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) will invest up to £2.

5 million from the UKRI R&D MAP Breaking Down Barriers to Opportunity Mission in this Contracts for Innovation competition. This is subject to us receiving a sufficient number of high quality applications. The aim of this competition is to develop innovations that enable earlier, fairer, and more reliable identification of special educational needs (SEN) in contexts where existing market solutions underperform or do not operate.

The competition has a UK-wide remit, with the Additional Learning Needs (ALN) and Additional Support Needs (ASN) terms used in Wales and Scotland being within the definition of “SEN” used in this brief. Projects should focus on developing, testing and rolling out innovations to enable the earlier identification of children and young people with SEN, and for strengths and needs assessment, that can be integrated into education settings.

This is phase 1 of a potential 3 phase competition. The decision to proceed with phase 2 will depend on the outcomes from phase 1 and assessment of a separate application into a subsequent phase 2 competition. Only the successful applicants from phase 1 will be invited to apply to take part in phase 2.

In applying to phase 1 of this competition you are entering into a competitive process. This competition has a funding budget of up to £2. 5 million, so we may not be able to fund all the proposed projects.

It may be the case that your project scores highly and receives positive comments from the assessors but we are still unable to fund it due to the portfolio approach we take. Any adoption and implementation of a solution from this competition would be subject to a separate, possibly competitive, procurement exercise. This competition does not cover the purchase of any solution.

We expect to receive a high volume of applications and will not be able to fund them all. We expect to award a maximum of 12 contracts. We consider a range of factors when determining whether to provide funding to applicants.

This includes an assessment of prior conduct, such as any outstanding payments owed to Innovate UK or UKRI. Such factors may influence the funding decision, potentially resulting in a refusal of funding or an award subject to additional scrutiny. We also reserve the right to adjust funding allocations for any of our competitions.

This may be in response to changes in policy, portfolio funding considerations or broader government funding decisions. This competition closes at 11am UK time on the deadline stated in this Innovate UK competition brief . We cannot guarantee other government or third party sites will always show the correct competition information.

Phase 1 projects can range in size up to total eligible costs of £500,000, inclusive of VAT. Accessibility and Inclusion We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to making our application process accessible to everyone. This includes making reasonable adjustments for people who have a disability or a long-term condition and face barriers applying to us.

You can contact us at any time to ask for guidance. We recommend you contact us at least 15 working days before this competition’s closing date to allow us to put the most suitable support in place. The support we can provide may be limited if you contact us close to the competition deadline.

You can contact Innovate UK by email or call 0300 321 4357. Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays). have total costs of between £200,000 and £500,000, inclusive of VAT Projects must always start on the first of the month, even if this is a non-working day.

You must not start your project until your Contract has been approved by Innovate UK. You must only include eligible project costs in your application. See our overview of eligible project costs .

If your project does not meet our criteria and you have not requested justification approval, your application will be made ineligible and it will not be sent for assessment.

To lead a project, you can: be an organisation of any size, including those based in the EU, EEA or internationally work alone or with the subcontracted skills and expertise of others from business, research organisations, research and technology organisations, or the third sector (charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups) Contracts will be awarded to a single legal entity only.

The majority of the project work and key deliverables must be completed by the applicant and be carried out in the UK, and most of the funding spent within the UK. Subcontractors can be used, but only for specialist skills.

This competition will not fund you, or provide any financial benefit to any individual or entities directly or indirectly involved with you, which would expose Innovate UK or any direct or indirect beneficiary of funding from Innovate UK to UK Sanctions .

For example, through any procurement, commercial, business development or supply chain activity with any entity as lead, partner or subcontractor related to these countries, administrations and terrorist groups . Use of animals in research and innovation Innovate UK expects and supports the provision and safeguarding of welfare standards for animals used in research and innovation, according to best practice and up to date guidance.

Applicants must ensure that all of the proposed work within projects, both in the UK and internationally, will comply with the UKRI guidance on the use of animals in research and innovation . Any projects selected for funding which involve animals will be asked to provide additional information on welfare and ethical considerations, as well as compliance with any relevant legislation as part of the project start-up process.

This information will be reviewed before an award is made. Up to £2. 5 million inclusive of VAT has been allocated to fund innovation projects to this phase 1 feasibility study research and development (R&D) competition.

Contracts will be up to £500,000, inclusive of VAT, for each project for up to 12 months. We expect to fund up to 12 projects. This is subject to us receiving a sufficient number of high quality applications.

Funding will be in the form of a contract. We reserve the right to adjust funding allocations for any of our competitions under exceptional circumstances, for example, in response to changes in policy, portfolio funding considerations, or broader government funding decisions. Successful projects from phase 1 may be invited to a potential phase 2 to further develop their solution.

The total funding available for the competition can change. The funders have the right to: adjust the provisional funding allocations between the phases apply a portfolio approach The contract is completed at the end of phase 1, and the successful organisation is expected to pursue commercialisation of their solution. You must select whether you are VAT registered before entering your eligible project costs.

VAT is the responsibility of the invoicing business. We will not provide any further advice and suggest you seek independent advice from HMRC. If you select you are VAT registered, you must enter your eligible project costs exclusive of VAT.

As part of the application process VAT will be automatically calculated and added to your project cost total. Your total eligible project costs inclusive of VAT must not exceed £500,000. If you select you are not VAT registered, you must enter your eligible project costs exclusive of VAT and no VAT will be added.

You will not be able to increase total project costs to cover VAT later should you become VAT registered. Your total project costs must not exceed £500,000. Research and development (R&D) Your application must have at least 50% of the contract value attributed directly and exclusively to R&D services, including solution exploration and design.

R&D can also include prototyping and field-testing the product or service. This lets you incorporate the results of your exploration and design and demonstrate that you can produce in quantity to acceptable quality standards.

commercial development activities such as quantity production supply to establish commercial viability or to recover R&D costs integration, customisation or incremental adaptations and improvements to existing products or processes Innovate UK may revoke our decision to provide funding without notice if government commitment for this initiative is withdrawn.

Contracts for Innovation competitions involve procurement of R&D services and are not subject to subsidy control criteria. This competition is run by the Authority under the Procurement Act 2023 (R&D exemption). The aim of this competition is to develop innovations that enable earlier, fairer, and more reliable identification of special educational needs (SEN) in contexts where existing market solutions underperform or do not operate.

We are seeking projects that are developing solutions with a credible route to real world adoption and impact, which will enable one or both of: earlier and more accurate identification of children and young people in the UK who have, or are likely to have, SEN consistent, high quality assessment of each child’s individual strengths and needs This could include, but is not limited to, projects that: develop tools designed for deployment by frontline services, especially at universal review points, for example, the health and development reviews and the reception baseline assessment (RBA) in England enable identification of children’s needs at the earliest stages of life, particularly prior to entry into formal education refine and test high potential approaches to ensure they are ready to be scaled at pace across national education systems mitigate current inconsistencies in SEN identification or assessment across different local authorities and educational settings develop innovations based on the predictive value of prematurity indicators or early speech and language assessments use health data or operate in health settings.

However, there must be a clear link to education, either by products having utility in educational settings or improving educational outcomes Applications should demonstrate how the proposed work will move beyond concept development and into delivery, adoption and impact.

In particular, applicants must: demonstrate a credible and practical route to real use, including plans to commercialise or otherwise embed the solution within existing systems or services develop a tangible output, such as a product, tool, framework, service model or platform, rather than undertaking purely exploratory or conceptual work set out clear plans for delivery, spreading and scaling, including who the end users are and how they will access or adopt the solution.

Where relevant, innovations should be compatible with existing school and health processes and systems, and forthcoming SEN reforms where appropriate demonstrate a clear plan for establishing the usability and validity of tools across different geographic regions and age groups.

This should include appropriate child, parent and carer, teacher, and SENCO co-design or engagement commit to working collaboratively with UKRI and the Department for Education (DfE), or the equivalent body in the devolved administrations, to support potential adoption, integration and wider take‑up of the solution following the project develop projects which, where relevant, have the potential to “grow with the child”.

That is, having lasting utility over time, rather than being applicable to a single development stage or narrow period of education All funded projects will be required to work in accordance with the UKRI preventing harm (safeguarding) in research and innovation policy . You must define your goals in your application and outline your plan for phase 1.

You must demonstrate a credible and practical route to market, so your application must include a plan to commercialise your results. At this stage contracts will only be given for phase 1. In a potential phase 2 we will ask successful applicants from phase 1 to continue the development of their solutions.

We want to fund a diverse portfolio of projects spanning different solutions and maturity levels. We may also consider geographic spread, and the age groups of children who would benefit from the project. We call this a portfolio approach .

Phase 1: prototype development and evaluation This can include prototyping, demonstrating, piloting, testing and validation of new or improved products, processes or services in environments representative of real life operating conditions. The primary objective is to make further technical improvements on products, processes or services that are not substantially set.

Subject to outcomes and the availability of funding, a second and third phase of funding may be made available at a later date. Access to any further funding would be through a competitive process, open only to applicants successful in this phase 1 competition and is not guaranteed. Phase 2 funding is to support real world implementation and testing.

Projects we will not fund To ensure public funding is directed towards genuine innovation and addresses specific market failures, we are not funding projects that: focus on fundamental or purely academic research without a clear, near-term route to commercialisation or deployment do not have a clear plan for involving relevant users and beneficiaries, such as parents and carers, teachers, SEN coordinators, healthcare professionals in the design and testing phases replicate existing commercially available SEN assessment tools without demonstrating significant technological or operational innovation fail to demonstrate rigorous compliance with UK data protection legislation and other relevant and applicable statutory guidance, such as the SEN Code of Practice and Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance in England are not original, in scope or duplicates someone else’s work would directly duplicate other UK Government or EU funded initiatives you have already been funded to deliver are covered by existing commercial agreements to deliver the proposed solutions do not have UK children and families as their direct or indirect beneficiaries Online briefing event: watch the recording (Briefing slides are available to download from supporting information) Text update 7 July 2026: we have removed the wording in 'what happens next' about interviews as this is not applicable in this competition.

By submitting an application, you agree to the terms of the draft contract which is available once you start your application. The terms of the contract are non-negotiable and are included in the draft contract. We reserve the right to change the terms and conditions if necessary.

The final contract will include any milestones you have agreed with the funding authority and will be sent to you if your application is successful. The contract is binding once it is returned by you and signed by both parties.

As the applicant you are responsible for: collecting the information for your application representing your organisation in leading the project if your application is successful You will be able to invite colleagues from your organisation to contribute to the application. A selected panel of assessors will review and score your application. You will be notified of the outcome and feedback will be provided.

Contracts for this phase 1 will then be issued to all successful applicants. The application is split into four sections: You must read the guidance on applying for a competition on the Innovation Funding Service before you start.

Before submitting, it is the lead applicant’s responsibility to make sure: that all the information provided in the application is correct your proposal meets the eligibility and scope criteria all sections of the application are marked as complete You can reopen your application once submitted, up until the competition deadline. You must resubmit the application before the competition deadline.

Accessibility and Inclusion We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to making our application process accessible to everyone. This includes making reasonable adjustments for people who have a disability or a long-term condition and face barriers applying to us. You can contact us at any time to ask for guidance.

We recommend you contact us at least 15 working days before this competition’s closing date to allow us to put the most suitable support in place. The support we can provide may be limited if you contact us close to the competition deadline. You can contact Innovate UK by email or call 0300 321 4357.

Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays). This section provides background for your application and is not scored. Give your project’s title, start date and duration.

Who made you aware of the competition? Select a category to state who made you aware of the competition. You cannot choose more than one.

How long has your organisation been established for? Select a category to state how long has your organisation been established for. You cannot choose more than one.

What is your organisation’s primary focus area? Select a category to state your organisation’s primary focus area. You cannot choose more than one.

Project a nd scope summary Provide a short summary of your project. Describe your project briefly. Be clear about what makes it innovative and how it relates to the scope of the competition.

How does it tackle different aspects of the challenge and how will it provide an integrated solution? Give details of the lead organisation. Before you submit, we expect you to have discussed your application within your organisation.

Your answer for this section can be up to 800 words long. This section is not scored, but we will use it to decide whether the project fits the scope of the competition. If it does not, it may be rejected.

Provide a brief description of your project. If your application is successful, we will publish this description. This can happen before you start your project.

This question is mandatory, but we will not assess this content as part of your application. Describe your project in a way that you are happy to see published. Do not include any commercially sensitive information.

We have the right to amend the description before publication if necessary but will consult you about any changes. Your answer can be up to 400 words long. You must state the name of your organisation along with your full registered address.

You must also state the name and full registered address of any potential or confirmed subcontractors. We are collecting this information to understand the geographical location of all participants of a project. Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

The assessors will score all of your questions except questions 1 to 5 which are not scored. You will receive feedback for each scored question. Find out more about how our assessors assess and how we select applications for funding .

You must not include any website addresses or links (URLs) in your answers. Any website addresses or URLs included, will not be viewed or opened. Question 1.

Animal testing (not scored) Will your project involve any trials with animals or animal testing? You must select one option: We will only support innovation projects conducted to the highest standards of animal welfare. Further information for proposals involving animal testing is available at the UKRI Good Research Hub and NC3R’s animal welfare guidance .

Question 2. Permits and licences (not scored) Will you have the correct permits and licences in place to carry out your project? We are unable to fund projects which do not have the correct permits or licences in place by your project start date.

You must select one option: In the process of being applied for Question 3. International collaboration (not scored) Does your proposed work involve any international collaboration or engagement? You must provide details of any expected international collaboration or engagement.

You must include a list of the names and the countries, any international project co-leads, project partners, visiting researchers, or other collaborators are based in. You must also include details of any subcontractors or service providers. If your proposed work does not involve international collaboration or engagement, your answer must confirm this.

Your answer to this question can be up to 100 words long. Question 4. Export licence (not scored) You must indicate whether an export control license is required for this project under the academic export control guidance .

You must select one option: Question 5.

Trusted Research and Innovation (not scored) You must explain if your proposed project work relates to UKRI’s Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I) Principles , including: a list of any dual-use (both military and non-military) applications to your research a list of the areas where your project is relevant to one or more of the 17 areas of the UK National Security and Investment (NSI) Act whether an export control license is required for this project under the academic export control guidance and the status of any applications a list of any items or substances on the UK Strategic Export Control List If your proposed work does not relate to UKRI’s TR&I Principles, your answer must confirm this.

We may ask you to provide additional TR&I information at a later date, in line with UKRI TR&I Principles and funding terms and conditions. Your answer to this question can be up to 400 words long. Question 6.

Proposed idea or technology How does the project meet the challenge described in the competition scope? Provide a description of your proposed idea or technology. Include a description of the current state of development or readiness of the idea.

You can submit a single appendix as a PDF containing images and diagrams to support your answer. It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages and must be legible at 100% zoom.

This question will be scored against this assessment criterion: ‘How well does the proposal meet the challenge? ’. Your answer to this question can be up to 800 words long.

Question 7. Technical project summary What are the main technical challenges you are addressing?

how you will address the challenge the main technical deliverables the research and development that will prove the scientific, environmental and commercial merit of the project what might be achieved by deploying the innovation to address the selected challenge This question will be scored against this assessment criterion: ‘How valid is the technical approach? ’. Your answer to this question can be up to 400 words long Question 8.

Current state of the art and intellectual property Are similar products currently available in the market? How is your proposed project differentiated from them?

You must include details of: any existing intellectual property (IP) its significance to your freedom to operate novel concepts you develop or employ new approaches or technologies you use new tools or technologies You must explain how you would handle any intellectual property (IP) issues which might arise during the project.

If you are working with subcontractors (specialist skills only), include details of how you will maintain freedom to operate and fulfil the IP requirements detailed in the contract.

This question will be scored against these assessment criteria: how innovative is this project how much does the project develop or employ novel concepts, approaches, methodologies, tools or technologies for this area how well does the project demonstrate understanding of relevant IP and its significance on freedom to operate Your answer to this question can be up to 400 words long Question 9.

Project plan and methodology Describe your project plan and identify the main milestones. The plan for this phase 1 must be comprehensive. The emphasis throughout should be on practicality.

Provide evidence that the technology works, can be made into a viable product and can achieve the proposed benefits.

describe resources that will be needed to deliver the project describe what the main success criteria will be identify the project management processes that will ensure you achieve the milestones provide a clear plan for establishing technical and commercial feasibility describe the main technical, commercial and environmental risks and what you will do to mitigate them You must upload a project plan or Gantt chart as an appendix in PDF format.

It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages and must be legible at 100% zoom.

be defined using SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound) criteria be associated with the appropriate deliverables and payments indicate your payment schedule by month This question will be assessed against these assessment criteria: does the proposal show a clear plan for establishing technical and commercial feasibility is there a clear management plan what are the main technical, commercial, and environmental risks to the project’s success how will these be effectively managed are the milestones and evaluation procedures appropriate Note that information from the finances section will be used to support the assessment of this question.

Proposed milestones and associated payments stated in this section must match those entered in the finance summary on your application. Your answer to this question can be up to 400 words long Question 10. Technical team and expertise Who is in the technical team?

What expertise do they offer? Provide a brief description of your technical team, including any subcontractors. how each organisation has the skills, capabilities, and experience to deliver the intended benefits how much of their time will be spent on the project This question will be scored against this assessment criterion: Does the applicant have the skills, capabilities and experience to deliver the intended benefits?

Your answer to this question can be up to 400 words long Question 11. Costs and value for money How much will the project cost for phase 1? How does it represent value for money for the team and the taxpayer?

the total costs inclusive of VAT (If applicable) you are requesting in terms of the project goals for phase 1 how this project represents value for money for you and the taxpayer Proposed costs stated in this section for phase 1 must match those entered in the finance summary. All costs quoted must reflect actual costs at a fair market value and not include profit. You can submit a single appendix as a spreadsheet in PDF format.

It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages and must be legible at 100% zoom. Indicate your potential costs for phase 2.

Progression to phase 2 depends on your success in phase 1. Note that all payments are made monthly in arrears on submission of an invoice. The invoice must be submitted within 30 days of the end of each monitoring period for all completed milestones.

Full Economic Cost (FEC) calculations are not relevant for Contracts for Innovation competitions. Contracts for Innovation is a competitive process and applications will come from a variety of organisations. Whatever calculation you use to arrive at your total eligible project costs your application will be assessed against applications from other organisations.

Bear this in mind when calculating your total eligible project costs. You can include overheads but remember that this is a competitive process. The assessors are required to judge the application finances in terms of value for money.

They will score your finances against this assessment criterion: ‘Are the budget and costs realistic, justified and appropriate for the aims and methods? Note that the information from the finances section will be used to support the assessment of this question. Your answer to this question can be up to 400 words long Question 12.

Commercial potential What is the commercial potential of your project? You must focus on your proposed customer’s needs. projects commercial potential for a marketable product, process or service Describe the competitive advantage that your project has over existing or alternative technologies that meet market needs.

Describe any existing commercial relationships relevant to the project. With the focus on your proposed customer’s needs, you can also mention the future commercial potential across the public or private sector and international markets.

This question will be scored against these assessment criteria: is there a clear commercial potential for a marketable product, process or service is there a clear plan to deliver that and a clear route to market how significant is the competitive advantage of this technology over the nearest currently available solutions to the challenge identified.

Your answer to this question can be up to 400 words long Enter your phase 1 project costs, organisation details and funding details. You must select whether you are VAT registered before entering your eligible project costs. We advise you answer the VAT registered question first before entering your eligible costs.

Your total eligible project costs must not exceed £500,000. If you select you are VAT registered, you must enter your eligible project costs exclusive of VAT. As part of the application process VAT will be automatically calculated and added to your eligible project cost total.

If you select you are not VAT registered, you must enter your eligible project costs exclusive of VAT and no VAT will be added. You will not be able to increase total project costs to cover VAT later should you become VAT registered. VAT is the responsibility of the invoicing business.

We will not provide any further advice and advise you to seek independent advice from HMRC. All milestones must have clear deliverables and success criteria. Evidence that these have been achieved must be provided at each monthly review meeting.

The costs for your milestones should be representative of the level of