KTP Awards
The Annual KTP Awards
The annual Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Awards celebrate the exceptional achievements of graduates, universities, and businesses driving innovation across the UK.
The 2025 Awards Competition
The 2025 Innovate UK Knowledge Transfer Partnerships Awards competition is now open, and we invite you to submit your application.
The deadline for submissions is Wednesday, 30 April 2025. Applications will first be reviewed by our internal Knowledge Transfer Advisors and then by our Judging Panel, with the finalists announced on Tuesday, 10 June 2025.
We look forward to receiving your applications and celebrating the innovative impact of your Knowledge Transfer Partnership projects. Share your success, showcase your achievements, and gain recognition for the positive change you’re driving.
Need guidance on your application?
Every year, we receive applications from innovative businesses across the UK, and we look forward to hearing about your success story.
We’ve prepared a variety of useful resources to help you succeed in your application:
- Watch the KTP Awards 2025 Applicant Briefing or view the slides to gain essential insights into the application process.
- If you have any further questions, refer to the FAQs or contact us.
- Watch the Applicant Q&A to gain further knowledge from the experts and learn more about the most commonly asked questions.
- Watch Professor Suzannah Lipscomb’s insights to learn how the power of storytelling can make your KTP Awards application stand out:
Knowledge Transfer Partnership Award
Partnerships should demonstrate excellent achievements across all three Partners: Business; Academic; Associate. Partnerships must be able to demonstrate how they have gone beyond the aims and objectives stated in the original proposal.
Technical Excellence Award
Partnerships should demonstrate excellence in the application of science, technology, engineering, or maths. The application of STEM expertise to the business innovation must be clear: contribution to the evolution of the field and the research interests of the academic team must also be showcased.
The Business Transformation Award
This award recognises KTP and MKTP partnerships that demonstrate significant organisational change impact, cultural transformation, and evidence of exceptional leadership in driving innovation. Applications should showcase how the partnership has addressed significant challenges, enabled operational and cultural advancements, and delivered benefits to all stakeholders while tackling strategic issues.
Future Leader Award
The application must showcase a KTP Associate who has shown exceptional skills, above and beyond normal expectations. Nominees must demonstrate excellence in delivery of their innovation project, in contributing to corporate strategy, and in project management and leadership.
Changing the World Award
Partnerships should demonstrate the impact of their KTP for the benefit of people and/ or the planet, including projects that have delivered a significant societal, social, or environmental impact. Applications should showcase how they have contributed to making our world a fairer or better place. Demonstrating a positive impact on inclusion and diversity is expected. Applications in this category are likely to have drawn from some element of Net Zero activity, alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) or the application of SHAPE disciplines (Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts for People and the Economy).
KTP Academic of the Year Award
The application must showcase an academic who has demonstrated exceptional skills and commitment in knowledge translation, leadership, team building and mentoring. There must be demonstrable excellence in supporting the tasks, in the development of new capability in the business, and in supporting and inspiring the personal development and skills of the KTP Associate.
Knowledge Base KTP Support Team Award
The application must demonstrate how the work of your KTP support team has led to developing, sustaining, and growing their KTP portfolio. It should showcase a high-performing KTP support team that has been proactive and innovative in engaging and capitalising on the opportunities offered by participation in the Programme. Activities highlighted may be internally focused on delivering high-quality support services to project Partners or externally focused on business engagement or a combination of both.
African Agriculture KTP Award
Partnerships should demonstrate excellent achievements across all four Partners: African Business; UK Academic; African Academic; Associate. Partnerships must be able to demonstrate how they have gone beyond the aims and objectives stated in the original proposal. Specify the African nation location and region of the business partner.
Ready to make your mark?
Submit your application for the 2025 KTP Awards today and join the ranks of successful KTP partnerships making a real difference.
The 2024 Awards
The 2024 KTP Awards offered a powerful reflection on decades of innovation and collaboration. Held at The Vox in Birmingham, this spectacular event highlighted the programme’s extraordinary legacy while looking ahead to its exciting future.
Full winners list
Facilitated by Innovate UK, this year’s 13 award winners highlight the transformative power of partnerships that fuel business growth through academic expertise.
- African Agriculture KTP – Savannah and Sahel Commodities (SSCL) Limited (Ghana), University for Development Studies (Ghana) and the University of York
- Best KTP – I Want Plants Limited and Manchester Metropolitan University
- Business Impact and Transformation – Hello Bio Limited and the University of Bristol
- Academic of the Year – Dr Tara Brooks, Queen’s University Belfast
- Best Knowledge Base Support Team – Leeds Beckett University
- Best Promotional KTP Video – Queen’s University Belfast
- Changing the World – Savannah and Sahel Commodities (SSCL) Limited (Ghana), University for Development Studies (Ghana) and the University of York
- Future Leaders – Santosh Salunkhe, Dunsters Farm Limited and Manchester Metropolitan University
- Future Leaders – Kate Turley, Chroma Lighting (N.I.) Limited and Ulster University
- Future Leaders – Úna Barrett, Felix O’Hare & Company Limited and Queen’s University Belfast
- Future Leaders – Colm Dowling, Safehinge Primera Limited and Glasgow Caledonian University
- Best Management KTP – Heron Bros Limited and Ulster University
- KTP Technical Excellence – University of Northampton and Scottish Leather Group Limited
You can also view the livestream or watch the highlights from the 2024 Awards on our YouTube channel.
See the impact of KTP
Browse our case studies and see how we can help deliver real innovation across all economic sectors for any UK business, big or small.