This document is provided as a short guide to help you submit a proposal for the Horizon 2020 funding programme (H2020). It provides a brief overview of how to apply, things to think about, where to get support and useful links. At the end of this document there is information about live and forthcoming H2020 funding calls that are particularly relevant to the creative industries. The document has been produced by the Knowledge Transfer Network, in partnership with Creative England and the European Creative Business Network, so that creative industries businesses and organisations can maximise the opportunities for funding. The original version can be found at: http://bit.ly/1wusLW3

1. !
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A!Guide!to!Horizon!2020!Funding!for!
the!Creative!Industries!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
October!2014!
!!

2. Introduction!
!
This!document!is!provided!as!a!short!guide!to!help!you!submit!a!proposal!for!the!Horizon!2020!
funding!programme!(H2020).!It!provides!a!brief!overview!of!how!to!apply,!things!to!think!about,!
where!to!get!support!and!useful!links.!At!the!end!of!this!document!there!is!information!about!live!
and!forthcoming!H2020!funding!calls!that!are!particularly!relevant!to!the!creative!industries.!
!
The!document!has!been!produced!by!the!Knowledge!Transfer!Network,!in!partnership!with!Creative!
England!and!the!European!Creative!Business!Network,!so!that!creative!industries!businesses!and!
organisations!can!maximise!the!opportunities!for!funding.!It!follows!directly!from!a!briefing!event!
held!by!these!organisations!in!London!in!October!14,!and!has!benefited!from!the!contribution!of!a!
number!of!sector!organisations!and!individuals!with!considerable!experience!and!knowledge!of!
European!funding!programmes.!
!
!
About!Horizon!2020!
!
H2020!is!the!major!funding!opportunity!for!research!and!innovation!initiatives!across!Europe.!Over!
seven!years!up!until!2020!some!€80!billion!of!funding!will!be!available!to!support!research,!
innovation!and!business!competitiveness.!It!is!the!successor!to!Framework!Programme!(FP)!7,!which!
was!the!seventh!such!investment!programme!stretching!back!to!1984.!In!terms!of!its!underlining!
policy!rationale,!H2020!is!implementing!the!Innovation!Union!strategy!to!‘create!an!innovationV
friendly!environment’!in!EU,!in!which!new!products!and!services!are!developed,!leading!to!jobs!and!
growth.!Innovation!Union!is!in!turn!an!initiative!that!comes!under!Europe!2020,!the!EU’s!tenVyear!
strategy!for!economic!growth.!
!
Compared!to!its!FP!predecessors,!Horizon!2020!is!a!more!streamlined!fund!that!is!set!up!to!deliver!
innovative!responses!to!societal!needs.!It!covers!three!broad!strands:!
!
(i) Excellent!Science:!basic!scientific!research,!including!career!development!and!training!of!
researchers!
(ii) Industrial!Leadership.!This!is!based!around!six!subVprogrammes,!including!advanced!
materials,!biotechnology,!advanced!manufacturing!and!information!and!communication!
technologies!(ICT)!
(iii) Better!Society:!these!tackle!solutions!to!‘societal!challenges’!–!major!social!and!economic!
problems!such!as!health,!energy,!environment,!security!etc!
!
H2020!is!mainly!composed!of!an!ongoing!programme!of!funding!calls!addressing!specific!topics,!each!
of!which!is!open!for!a!limited!period!to!competitively!assessed!proposals!and!has!a!specified!sum!set!
against!it.!For!the!creative!industries,!it!is!expected!that!the!major!funding!calls!will!come!under!the!
ICT!subVprogramme!of!Industrial!Leadership.!Each!of!the!individual!funding!calls!is!usually!composed!
of!up!to!three!different!‘actions’,!again!with!a!fixed!sum!set!against!it.!The!three!actions!are!as!
follows:!
!
(i)$Research$Innovation$Actions:!These!are!actions!with!Research!and!Development!activities!as!the!
core!of!the!project!intending!to!establish!new!scientific!and!technical!knowledge!and/or!explore!the!
feasibility!of!a!new!or!improved!technology,!product,!process,!service!or!solution!
!

3. (ii)$Innovation$Actions:!Primarily!consisting!of!activities!directly!aiming!at!producing!plans!and!
arrangements!or!designs!for!new,!altered!or!improved!products,!processes!or!services.!For!this!
purpose!they!may!include!prototyping,!testing,!demonstrating,!piloting,!largeVscale!product!
validation!and!market!replication!
(iii)$Coordination$and$support$actions:!These!are!actions!that!cover!not!the!research!itself,!but!the!
coordination!and!networking!of!projects,!programmes!and!policies.!This!includes!innovation!network!
activities,!dissemination!of!knowledge,!actions!to!stimulate!the!participation!of!SMEs!!
!
In!the!addition!to!the!calls,!H2020!includes!The$SME$Instrument,!an!ongoing!fund!(worth!€3bn!up!
until!2020)!to!which!small!and!medium!sized!enterprises!(i.e.!fewer!than!250!employees)!that!are!EU!
based!can!apply!directly!to!get!funding!and!support!for!innovation!projects!that!will!help!them!to!
grow!and!expand!their!activities!into!countries,!in!Europe!and!beyond.!
!!
Trans?nationality!
!
Trans-nationality, or the carrying out of actions across national borders, is!a!guiding!principle!of!
the!EU,!particularly!in!terms!of!the!wider!benefits,!lessons!and!best!practice!that!are!generated!
through!such!activities.!Horizon!2020!is!a!transVnational!programme!and!this!means!that!many!calls!
will!need!partners!from!up!to!three!different!eligible!countries!in!a!consortium.!In!summary:!!
!
• Research!&!innovation!actions!AND!Innovation!actions.!At!least!three!legal!entities!from!at!
least!three!different!Member!States!or!associated!countries.!!
• Coordination!&!support!actions.!No!requirements!–!but!applications!with!a!transnational!
element!are!likely!to!be!looked!on!favourably.!!
• SME!instrument.!No!requirements.!!
!
The!aim!of!this!is!to!help!share!learning!across!Europe!and!most!applications!will!be!strengthened!by!
a!reference!to!some!“added!value”!from!any!transVnational!element.!For!example,!you!may!show!
how!cooperating!with!organisations!from!other!countries!can!help!you!to!develop!a!product!or!
service!that!can!be!used/implemented!in!many!regions!across!the!programme!area.!Or!you!may!
show!that!partner!organisations!will!learn!from!each!other!as!part!of!the!experience.!In!any!case,!a!
good!application!will!also!be!required!to!demonstrate!how!the!research/development!will!be!widely!
shared!across!Europe.!
!!!
Making!an!Application:!the!Key!Stages!
Stage$1$>$Submit$your$proposal$
If!you!wish!to!respond!to!a!call,!you!must!submit!a!proposal!before!the!deadline.!The!Participant!
Portal!has!clear!instructions!to!guide!you!through!the!process.!The!system!is!an!online!only!process!–!
there!is!no!need!to!submit!a!paper!application.!All!proposals!are!submitted!over!the!portal.!The!main!
proposal!will!be!written!in!a!template!format!–!as!an!editable!MS!Word!document.!This!should!be!
downloaded!and!can!be!filled!in!offline.!The!budget!must!be!filled!in!online,!on!the!template!
provided.!The!partner!details!must!also!be!filed!in!online.!Note!that!all!applications!require!you!to!
firstly!register!for!your!Participant!Identification!Code!(PIC).!This!is!a!9Vdigit!code!that!is!the!unique!
identifier!of!your!organisation!and!will!be!used!as!a!reference!in!all!interactions!with!the!EC.!

4. Stage$2$>$Find$your$partners$
Calls!normally!require!a!team!of!at!least!three!partners.!If!you!need!help!to!identify!a!potential!
partner!with!particular!competences,!facilities!or!experience,!use!the!partner!search!options.$
Stage$3$>$Evaluation$by$experts$
Once!the!deadline!has!passed,!all!proposals!are!evaluated!by!a!panel!of!independent!specialists!in!
their!fields.!The!panel!checks!each!proposal!against!a!list!of!criteria!to!see!if!it!should!receive!
funding.$
Stage$4$>$Grant$agreement$
Once!a!proposal!passes!the!evaluation!stage!(normally!five!months’!duration),!applicants!are!
informed!about!the!outcome.!The!European!Commission!then!draws!up!a!grant!agreement!with!
each!participant.!The!grant!agreement!confirms!what!research!&!innovation!activities!will!be!
undertaken,!the!project!duration,!budget,!rates!and!costs,!the!European!Commission's!contribution,!
all!rights!and!obligations!and!more.!The!time!limit!for!signing!the!grant!agreements!is!generally!three!
months.!
If!you!are!successful,!normally!grants!agreements!stipulate!that!all!partners!are!responsible!for!
project!delivery.!You!should!therefore!leave!time!both!before!and!after!application!assessment!to!
discuss!terms!and!roles!with!your!partners,!as!well!as!processes!for!reVorganising!work!if!partner!
circumstances!change.$
!
How!to!submit!your!proposal!
The!application!process!will!only!be!open!once!the!call!is!live.!It!will!be!available!from!the!specific!
topic!page!(e.g.!ICT!19!or!ICT!20)!–!as!per!the!links!below.!The!page!will!include!three!tabs!in!the!
middle!of!the!page:!
(i)$Topic$description!–!which!will!provide!info!on!the!call!
(ii)$Topic$conditions$and$documents!V!This!provides!extensive!detail!on!submission!information!
(iii)$Submission$service!–!Once!the!call!is!live!–!a!button!“Start!Submission”!will!appear!on!this!page.!
Click!on!the!button!to!go!to!the!Draft!proposal!form.!N.B.$you$are$recommended$to$use$Internet$
Explorer$–$there$are$issues$using$the$browser$Chrome$–$which$has$restricted$access$to$the$essential$
budget$submission$area.$
Once!you!have!reached!this!page!you!will!need!to!follow!the!steps!outlined!in!this!document!here.!
http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/support/sep_usermanual.pdf!
It!shows!you!the!steps!to!!
1. Register!yourself!
2. Register!your!company.!!
a. Each!Company!is!given!a!PIC!number.!This!is!a!Unique!Identifier.!A!company!will!only!
be!awarded!one!PIC!number!–!this!must!be!used!for!every!application,!whether!you!
are!the!lead!or!a!partner.!It!means!the!same!company!can!be!recognised!no!matter!
what!role!it!takes,!and!avoids!duplication!of!the!company!on!the!EU!system.!
3. Register!a!proposal!
a. Once!you!have!registered!your!proposal,!it!will!be!stored!as!a!draft!in!your!‘My!
Proposals’!area.!You!can!access!this!through!your!‘my!Area’!section!which!is!the!
page!you!will!be!taken!to!once!you!login.!Click!on!My!Proposals.!A!list!of!your!
proposals!is!shown!–!click!on!the!small!‘ED’!(edit)!button!to!the!right!–!to!gain!
access.!

5. 4. Add!a!partner!
a. To!add!a!partner,!click!on!‘Add!a!Partner’!button.!If!you!have!reVlogged!in!you!will!
need!to!click!on!the!Step!4!–!Parties!button!at!the!bottom!of!the!page.!
5. Upload!a!proposal!
6. Enter!the!budget!
!
The$Main$Proposals$
Contents$of$a$proposal:$
Each!type!of!proposal!comprises!of!a!number!of!sections:!
• General!information:!!Contact!details,!a!summary!of!your!proposed!activity,!declarations!
• Participants!&!contacts:!Who!is!involved!and!their!contact!details!
• Budget:!The!project!finances,!be!aware!that!projects!will!be!evaluated!heavily!on!value!for!
money!and!there!is!no!opportunity!to!adjust!your!budgets!at!a!later!date.!
• Ethics:!Yes/No!questions!relating!to!the!ethics!surrounding!your!proposed!activity.!!
• CallVspecific!questions:!Currently!being!updated!ahead!of!launch!but!these!will!relate!directly!
to!the!bid!and!will!interrogate!its!suitability,!excellence!and!innovation.!
!
Download!the!templates!from!the!‘Proposal’!section!–!Click!on!the!‘Download!templates’.!Follow!the!
template!format!for!the!structure!of!your!proposal.!!
When!it!is!complete!click!on!Upload!in!your!‘Proposal’!section!and!add!the!corresponding!completed!
document.!
!
Each!area!of!funding!has!a!specific!proposal!form!relevant!to!its!subcategory.!!
Applications!are!made!through!the!submission!service;!however!you!can!view!samples!of!these!
forms!online:!
For$RIA$and$IA$applications$you$can$see$a$sample$application$form$here:$$
http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/h2020/call_ptef/pt/h2020>call>pt>ria>
ia_en.pdf$
for$CSA$applications$you$can$see$a$sample$application$form$here:$
http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/h2020/call_ptef/pt/h2020>call>pt>ria>ia>
csa_en.pdf$
for$PPI$applications$you$can$see$a$sample$application$form$here:$
http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/h2020/call_ptef/pt/h2020>call>pt>pcp>
ppi_en.pdf$
$
The$Budget$$
The!budget!has!to!be!entered!online!only.!To!access!the!budget!section,!click!on!the!Edit!Forms!
button.!This!will!take!you!to!an!online!ENTRY!section!where!you!will!need!to!add!in!your!budget!
details.!H2020!funding!is!a!reimbursement!of!the!eligible!costs!incurred!for!the!action.!In!general,!for!
Research!Innovation!Actions!this!can!be!up!to!100%!of!eligible!costs,!while!for!Innovation!Actions!it!is!
70%!(or!100%!for!notVforVprofit!organisations).!Reimbursements!tend!to!largely!be!for!personnel!
costs,!for!which!timesheets!are!not!required!if!the!person!works!full!time!on!the!project.!
!
Partner$Details$
In!the!same!section!you!will!also!need!to!add!in!full!information!about!the!partners!you!are!working!
with.!As!well!as!other!administration!details.!Make!sure!you!look!though!this!in!advance,!as!it!will!
take!more!time!than!you!think.!
!
!

6. Other!European!Funding!
!
It!is!worth!remembering!that!Horizon!2020!is!by!no!means!the!only!source!of!funding!for!the!
creative!industries.!For!decades!now,!many!UK!organisations!have!been!delivering!projects!through!
the!‘structural!funds’!of!ERDF!(European!Regional!Development!Fund)!and!ESF!(European!Social!
Fund).!These!funds!are!intended!to!promote!economic!growth!and!opportunity!in!disadvantaged!
localities,!the!former!more!focused!around!infrastructure!and!business!support,!the!latter!around!
skills.!Both!of!these!are!ongoing!until!2020,!with!the!funds!allocated!by!the!UK!government!through!
bodies!such!as!the!Local!Enterprise!Partnerships!(LEPs).!
!
In!addition,!there!is!Creative!Europe!(based!out!of!the!EC’s!Education!and!Culture!Directorate)!which!
similarly!began!in!2014!and!runs!over!the!next!seven!years!with!a!total!budget!of!€1.5bn,!replacing!
the!EC’s!previous!Culture!and!MEDIA!funding!programmes.!Creative!Europe!funding!is!open!to!
creative!industries!and!cultural!organisations!(rather!than!individual!artists)!across!the!EU,!with!
funding!programmes!that!support!them!operate!across!Europe,!to!reach!new!audiences!and!to!
develop!the!skills!needed!in!the!digital!age.!
!
Broad!eligibility!and!guidelines!applicable!to!all!H2020!strands!are!explained!in!this!document:!
https://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/doc/call/h2020/common/1617621V
part_19_general_annexes_v.2.0_en.pdf!
!
$
Useful!Info!
Advice$on$how$to$apply$can$be$found$here:$$$
http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/h2020/grants_manual/pse/h2020>guide>
pse_en.pdf$
$
General$Links:$
http://www.europa.eu/horizon2020$
http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/docs/h2020VfundingVguide!
http://europa.eu/research/participation/portal!
!
H2020!Help!desk!V!http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=enquiries!
!
Contact$the$National$contact$Point$
The!national!contact!point!is!the!person!in!UK!designated!to!support!applications.!If!you!have!
queries!it!is!worth!talking!to!them:!!
!
http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/desktop/en/support/national_contact_points.htm
l!V!c,contact=country/sbg/United!
Kingdom/1/1/0&function_details..function_abbr/sbg//1/1/0&+contact_name/asc!
!!!
!

7. Forthcoming!Calls:!ICT!19!and!ICT!20!
!
ICT$19:$Technologies$for$Creative$Industries,$Social$Media$and$Convergence$
Closing!date!for!applications:!14/4/2015!
!
Topic!Challenge:$The!demand!is!growing!for!highVquality!content!and!new!user!experiences.!At!the!
same!time,!thanks!to!ubiquitous!technology!adoption,!widespread!use!of!mobile!devices,!broadband!
internet!penetration!and!increasing!computing!power!the!consumption!of!content!anywhere,!
anytime!and!on!any!device!is!becoming!a!reality.!Consequently,!developments!related!to!content!
creation,!access,!retrieval!and!interaction!offer!a!number!of!opportunities!and!challenges,!also!for!
the!creative!and!media!industries.!In!order!to!keep!pace!with!the!trends!and!remain!competitive,!
those!industries!need!to!explore!new!ways!of!creating!and!accessing!content.!The!opportunity!to!
establish!new!forms!of!content!and!user!engagement!could!be!transformative!to!many!businesses!in!
creative!and!media!industries.!
!
Participant!Portal:!ICT$19$–$Technologies$for$creative$industries,$social$media$and$convergence$
Which$is$subcategorised$as$
• RIA!–!Research!and!Innovation!Action!(funding!rate!up!to!100%):!Research!based!activity!
into!tools!to!support!the!Creative!Industries!or!innovative!approaches!to!teaching!and!
learning!environments!
• IA!–!Innovation!Action:!!Testing!of!new!technologies!or!innovative!solutions!
• CSA!V!Coordination!and!Support!Action:!Facilitation!of!support!to!research!on!policy!
exchange!in!Convergence!and!Social!Media!or!in!the!dissemination!of!research!in!this!area!
$
ICT$20:$Technology$for$Better$Human$Learning$and$Teaching$
Closing!date!for!applications:!14/4/2015!
Topic$Challenge:!The!development!and!integration!of!robust!and!fitVforVpurpose!digital!technologies!
for!learning!are!crucial!to!boost!the!market!for!and!innovation!in!educational!technologies.!!This!
requires!an!industryVled!approach!in!close!cooperation!with!academia!to!defining!the!frameworks!
and!interoperability!requirements!for!the!building!blocks!of!a!digital!ecosystem!for!learning!
(including!informal!learning)!that!develops!and!integrates!tools!and!systems!that!apply!e.g.!adaptive!
learning,!augmented!cognition!technologies,!affective!learning,!microVlearning,!gameVbased!learning!
and/or!virtual!environments/virtual!worlds!to!realVlife!learning!situations.!This!challenge!also!
encourages!public!procurement!of!innovative!solutions!to!address!the!needs!of!the!digital!learning!
ecosystem!in!making!better!use!of!educational!cloud!solutions,!mobile!technology,!learning!analytics!
and!big!data,!and!to!facilitate!the!use,!reVuse!and!creation!of!learning!material!and!new!ways!to!
educate!and!learn!online.!
!
Participant!Portal:!ICT$20$–$Technology$for$better$human$learning$and$teaching$
• RIA!–!Research!and!Innovation!Action!(funding!rate!up!to!100%):!Research!into!innovative!
approaches!to!teaching!and!learning!environments!
• IA!–!Innovation!Action!(Funding!rate:!70%,!except!for!nonVprofit!legal!entities,!where!a!rate!
of!100%!applies):!!
Testing!and!experimentation!of!new!models!for!learning!or!the!establishment!of!
frameworks!for!stakeholder!engagement!with!new!approaches!in!this!area!

8. • PPI!–!Public!Procurement!of!Innovative!Devices!(Funding!rate!20%):!Support!to!coordinate!
the!development!of!joint!specifications!and!procuring!of!innovative!devices!and!software!for!
the!application!of!technology!mediated!learning!and!teaching!!
$$!!!!!!