Updated 10 September 2026
Grants and funding for fishing and aquaculture businesses
Schemes open today that name fishing and aquaculture businesses in their published criteria, or fund the kind of work fishing and aquaculture businesses do. Read from the funders' own pages and re-checked daily.
9 open today. Whether your business qualifies for any of them depends on your legal form, your size, your age and where you are, which is what the check does.
Which of these can you actually get?
Enter your company number. We read each funder’s own page against your business and tell you which fit, which do not, and why.
Check my businessWhat kind of funding these are
- Grants
- 7
- In-kind and free support
- 1
- Loans
- 1
A grant is money you keep. A tax relief lowers a bill rather than arriving as cash. In-kind support is training, credits or expert time instead of money. Loans and equity have to be paid back or bought back, and are worth treating as a different decision entirely.
Who can apply
Every one of these has published criteria. Across the 9, the conditions that come up most are that you must:
- work in a named sector6 of 9
- be spending within a range3 of 9
- not have started the work yet2 of 9
- work with another organisation1 of 9
- be under a headcount limit1 of 9
Which of them you meet depends on your legal form, size, age and where you are registered. That is what the check reads for you, scheme by scheme, and it quotes the funder’s own sentence beside each answer.
What the money is for
- Net zero and decarbonisation 4
- Equipment 4
- Premises 4
- Staff training 3
- Research and development 3
- Innovation and new products 3
- Business growth 2
- Manufacturing 1
How to apply
You apply to the funder, never to us. Every scheme above links straight to its own page, and that page is the only thing that decides whether you get it.
Before you spend an afternoon on a form, three things are worth checking: that you are inside the deadline — 2 of these close within the month; that you have not already started or paid for the work, which a great many grants refuse; and that you can fund the share they expect you to.
Most refusals are not close calls. They are a rule the applicant never saw, in a sentence on the funder’s own page.
Where else to look
The government publishes its own list, free, and you should use it. What is above is wider than that list, because it also holds council schemes, tax reliefs and in-kind support that Find a Grant does not carry — but if you only want a list, start there.
Find a grant, on GOV.UKThe 9 open today
Grant
Fisheries and Seafood Scheme (FaSS)
Marine Management Organisation (on behalf of Defra)
Up to£750,000
FaSS is a grant scheme for businesses and organisations in England's seafood sector, covering shore facilities, vessel energy efficiency, health and safety, marine environment restoration, cooperative and advisory activity, and diversification. It pays a percentage of eligible project costs, with the rate depending on the type of applicant, and applications are assessed continuously rather than against a fixed deadline.
RollingThe funder’s page
Grant
Fisheries and Seafood Scheme (FaSS)
Marine Management Organisation
Up to£750,000
A Defra grant scheme, delivered by the Marine Management Organisation, that funds projects to make England's seafood sector more sustainable, resilient and competitive - covering shore-based facilities, cooperative activities and advisory services, vessel energy efficiency, health and safety, marine environment restoration, and diversification. Grants of up to £750,000 a year are available, with match funding required and larger awards reviewed by a competitive funding round panel.
RollingThe funder’s page
Loan
Fisheries Investment Scheme (FIS) loan
Western Isles Council (Comhairle nan Eilean Siar)
Up to£100,000
A council loan scheme to help fishing businesses in the Outer Hebrides buy fishing vessels, aimed at creating and retaining fisheries employment in the islands. It covers part of the purchase cost of a vessel, secured against a marine mortgage, alongside the applicant's own funding or a commercial loan.
RollingThe funder’s page
Grant
Advanced Manufacturing: Measurement and Sensing Pilot
Innovate UK
Up to£80,420
A 9-month Innovate UK pilot for UK SMEs developing measurement, sensing or instrumentation technology that solves a problem for UK advanced manufacturing supply chains (automotive, aerospace, battery, space, or advanced materials). Successful businesses get a fixed grant plus tailored growth support, but must apply for exactly one set total funding amount.
Closes 7 October 2026The funder’s page
Grant
AD:VENTURE Growth Grant
West Yorkshire Combined Authority
Up to£5,000
AD:VENTURE's Growth Grant offers West Yorkshire SMEs £1,500 to £5,000, covering up to 50% of eligible capital project costs, for growth investment such as equipment and IT. It is paid in arrears after the applicant has joined the AD:VENTURE programme and worked with a Business Manager on a diagnostic and action plan.
RollingThe funder’s page
Grant
Fisheries and Seafood Scheme (FaSS) — Competitive Funding Rounds
Marine Management Organisation (MMO)
The Fisheries and Seafood Scheme runs competitive funding rounds for larger fisheries and seafood industry projects worth over £250,000, covering labour and workforce development, community partnerships, and infrastructure. Applicants submit a business case ahead of one of several submission deadlines each year for review by a funding round panel.
RollingThe funder’s page
Grant
Marine Environment and Fisheries Fund 2026/27
Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA)
DAERA's Marine Environment and Fisheries Fund 2026/27 is open for applications from Northern Ireland's sea fisheries and aquaculture industry, across six themed funding streams covering vessel investment, innovation, environment and conservation, aquaculture development, processing and marketing, and fishing ports infrastructure. Funded projects must be completed and a final claim submitted by 31 March 2027.
RollingThe funder’s page
Grant
SAIC Funding Call 2026
Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC)
SAIC has opened a 2026 funding call for collaborative R&D and innovation projects tackling challenges across Scotland's aquaculture sector, spanning fish and shellfish health, seaweed, environmental sustainability and net zero. Projects must involve at least two partner organisations, led by industry or academia, with the lead organisation based in Scotland, and should target technologies at Technology Readiness Levels 4-7.
Closes 1 October 2026The funder’s page
In-kind support
Trawl Gear Technology Training Support
Seafish
Seafish, the UK's statutory seafood industry levy body, covers the cost of fishermen attending practical trawl gear technology training at the Sintef Flume Tank in Hirtshals, Denmark. Support covers travel between the UK and Denmark, hire of the Flume Tank, and overnight accommodation for fishermen and UK trainers.
RollingThe funder’s page