The agency says the goal is strengthen the UK’s industrial capability. And the funding will officially be made available through the European Space Agency’s (ESA) General Support Technology Programme (GSTP). This is the ESA’s flagship programme for maturing new space technologies from early-stage research to flight-ready demonstration.
“We are very pleased to be providing this further funding for new technologies across the space sector,” said the chair of the UKSA, Lord David Willetts. “The evidence shows this programme provides a real boost to individual companies and the wider economy.”
GSTP
An example of previous allocations through the GSTP have been cited by the UKSA. For example, the Bristol-based SME iCOMAT used funding to demonstrate an advanced composite manufacturing process for spacecraft structures (pictured).
Cardiff-based Space Forge has also benefited. It used the funding to support development of a reusable re-entry heat shield. This is identified as a key technology for returning high-value materials manufactured in space.
Specifically, design, prototyping and early testing took place ahead of flight trials. Apparently, this helped the company subsequently secure £12.3 million in private investment and create 20 skilled jobs.
Impact
Note that the UKSA has been involved in the wider ESA GSTP programme for more than 30 years.
Most recently, it committed £46 million of UK funding at ESA’s 2025 Ministerial Council.
The agency’s impact analysis of 44 previous GSTP projects (2019–2024) found strong benefits for UK industry, especially SMEs.
“Projects advanced an average of 2.28 Technology Readiness Levels, with some progressing up to four levels in a year. TRLs indicate how close a technology is to real-world use, the higher the number, the more developed it is.”