• Innovation Challenge: Lambeth

Can your product or service help Lambeth Council Services meet their net zero goals?

We’re calling on innovative solutions addressing Housing Development, Home Retrofit & Repairs, Building Performance, and Waste Management.

As experts in collaboration, we’re able to facilitate open innovation, locally.

Lambeth Council’s own service teams are facing tough challenges to reach Net Zero. SMEs operating within the Lambeth borough can help address them. The Innovation Challenge is a fully funded opportunity for SMEs and Public Sector service teams to find one another and partner in a short-term programme to explore the application of cutting-edge solutions.

Supported by Lambeth Council and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund

Your product or service could support:

  • Housing Development & Construction

    For example, addressing the challenges of planning permission, building regulations, and efficient construction to create affordable housing, specifically in underutilised spaces such as rooftops, garages, and car parks.

  • Home Retrofit & Repairs

    For example, addressing common maintenance issues in existing buildings and homes, such as damp & mould, disrepair prevention, and improving insulation, ventilation, and air quality.

  • Low-Carbon Building Solutions

    For example, addressing challenges related to a residential or commercial building's carbon footprint, including energy performance assessments, net zero building management systems, and optimising building operations.

  • Food Waste Management

    For example, addressing challenges related to food waste management by providing solutions for on-site waste-to-energy, waste monitoring, and promoting behavioural change around residential waste streams.

To take part in the challenge, you will be:

  • Able to apply your solution and operate within the Lambeth Borough

  • Excited to pitch to and build a relationship with Lambeth Council service teams

  • Willing to invest time (~6 hours) to understand the needs of a partner organisation (and potential customer)

  • Interested in finding opportunities to collaborate through Trials, Shared Learning and Commercial Relationships

Programme timeline

  • 01

    Apply to be shortlisted for the Innovation Challenge

    Complete a short questionnaire to introduce us to your offering and the theme it supports. Sustainable Ventures will shortlist the most relevant innovations in the Borough. Applications will close by Monday, November 3rd and innovators will be selected by November 13th.

  • 02

    Be invited to pitch to Lambeth Council on how your innovation addresses their need

    Attend the matching day to showcase (end of November) your offering and to meet with decision makers in Lambeth Council service areas.

  • 03

    Collaborate with the Council

    Sustainable Ventures will facilitate 3 months (~6 hours) of constructive engagement between the Council service team and the Innovative Partner to explore collaborations for a Net Zero future. 

  • 04

    Explore ways to integrate the chosen innovation

    Wrap up the funded engagement by discussing next steps, for example, a potential trial, commercial contract, or collaborative funding proposal.

  • 05

    Attend the innovation day

    An event at County Hall in March 2026 to showcase outcomes, learnings and successes.

  • Your support has been fantastic and I’d very much like to stay in touch and continue building on our relationship.

    Shahrokh Mohammadi, NS Innovations

  • I must say that the insights and connections Sustainable Ventures has brought to this process have been very precious to kickstart things on a right footing.

    Bruno de Penanster, Ananas Anam

  • We got a huge amount of benefit from being part of the programme. Thank you so much again to all of the SV team for the professional and thorough support.

    Emma Shaw and Rebecca Trevalyan, Library of Things

Ready to get involved?

Apply Here