NHS Innovation, Grant Funding & R&D Tax Credits

CardMedic’s Challenge

When Dr Rachael Grimaldi, an NHS anaesthetist, began her career, she quickly encountered a serious and pervasive problem that affected nearly every ward, every single day. Patients who didn’t share a common language with their clinical team or who had limited health literacy, struggled to understand their treatment, provide informed consent, or clearly communicate their symptoms. The consequences were not only deeply distressing for patients and their families, but often had serious clinical consequences.

Together with her husband Tim Grimaldi, Dr Grimaldi founded CardMedic in 2020 to address this gap directly. The platform was built as a clinically grounded communication tool for the NHS and wider healthcare sector, helping patients interact with clinicians across a broad range of barriers, including language differences, sign language, easy read, read aloud, and health literacy challenges, which affect more than 50% of the population.

More recently, CardMedic has expanded its capabilities to include live interpreter connectivity, live translation and AI interpretation, creating an integrated, cost-effective solution for NHS trusts. The platform now operates across nearly 30 NHS trusts, with tens of thousands of active users engaging with it daily.

Scaling a clinically grounded platform within the NHS requires more than a strong product. It demands sustained capital, iterative development, and the ability to prove clinical and financial value to an inherently cautious procurement environment. For CardMedic, the question was not simply how to grow, but how to grow without losing ownership or momentum.

CardMedic at a Glance

◉ 2020 : CardMedic founded by Tim Grimaldi and Dr Rachael Grimaldi, NHS anaesthetist, inspired by first-hand experience of communication barriers in patient care.
◉ 2020 (4 weeks in) : £75,000 COVID relief funding secured through Innovate UK – CardMedic’s first grant and a pivotal early milestone.
◉ 2021–2023 : Completion of seed investment round; CardMedic begins active pursuit of Innovate UK and SBRI grant opportunities with Venturenomix.
◉ 2023–2024 : Nearly £1m in grant funding secured, enabling a focused R&D programme and acceleration of platform development.
◉ 2024 : R&D Tax Credit claim completed with Leyton in approximately one month, delivering significant additional headroom.
◉ Today : CardMedic operational across nearly 30 NHS trusts with tens of thousands of active daily users.

The Grant Funding Journey – Partnering with Venturenomix

CardMedic’s relationship with grant funding began four weeks after the company was founded, when Innovate UK awarded the startup £75,000 in COVID relief funding. For a business that had barely found its footing, it was transformative.
“At the time that was a significant amount for a startup,” Tim Grimaldi reflects. “Without it, we simply wouldn’t have been able to grow. It was a clear signal that we should actively pursue grant funding going forward.”

Once a seed round was completed, the team took a deliberate decision to diversify their funding mix. Rather than rely solely on equity investment that would reduce their ownership stake, they sought to diversify their funding, pursuing Innovate UK and SBRI opportunities as complementary funding routes.

Venturenomix became a key partner in navigating this landscape. Where other organisations had offered broad advice, Venturenomix took a more embedded approach by investing time in understanding CardMedic’s product, the problem it was solving, and the gap it was filling in the NHS. That depth of understanding allowed them to represent the business credibly and effectively in applications.

“They’re genuinely an extension of the team,” says Grimaldi. “They have a far broader knowledge than we do of what funding is available across the UK and wider Europe and for us it’s been effortless.”

The results have been significant. Most recently, a single focused grant of almost £1 million was secured, enabling a defined R&D programme and providing the kind of structured, milestone-driven investment that suits an innovation-led business.

What Grimaldi values about grant funding is its discipline. Unlike equity, it is tied to a clear scope of work, structured around what will be spent and how, with realistic flexibility when real-world challenges arise. That combination of accountability and support has, he argues, been central to how CardMedic has grown.

Without the likes of Leyton and Venturenomix in finding grant opportunities, we and other companies simply wouldn’t exist.

Tim Grimaldi Co-Founder of CardMedic.

The R&D Tax Credit Journey- Partnering with Leyton

Tim Grimaldi was not new to R&D Tax Credits when Leyton first made contact. He had claimed them in a previous business and understood, in principle, that CardMedic’s work was likely to qualify. An earlier approach with a different provider had come to nothing, not because the claim lacked merit, but because the advisor had not taken the time to understand the business.

Leyton’s approach was different from the outset. A proactive introduction from Steven at Leyton arrived at the right moment, and what followed was a process that moved quickly and confidently. From initial conversation to a completed claim took around one month, a timeline that reflected both the clear eligibility of the work and Leyton’s ability to manage the process efficiently.

“As a small company, everyone wears multiple hats,” Grimaldi explains. “Having experts around you who are far more knowledgeable in these areas is simply how you move forwards as we can’t do everything ourselves.”

The R&D Tax Credit landscape is not without risk. Grimaldi is candid that some providers in the market over-promise, or push claims into territory that is, as he puts it, “frankly unethical.” Leyton, he says, took none of those shortcuts, remaining responsible, transparent and realistic throughout, which in a heavily scrutinised tax environment is not a given.

The financial outcome complemented CardMedic’s grant funding position directly. The credit extended the financial foundation the grants had built, giving the business additional headroom to move more quickly. That mattered in a phase where NHS adoption required sustained investment before the commercial returns became fully self-sustaining.

“It extended the financial support we’d built up,” says Grimaldi. “It took the initial backbone of grant funding and stretched it further. In our space, particularly in the NHS, you need that initial support before you’re in a position to stand on your own two feet. The combination of the two has made that possible.”

Looking back, Grimaldi’s reflection is simple: the specialist support was invaluable, and the only regret is not having found it sooner.

“My only regret is that I didn’t start sooner. I wish I’d known about both companies at the beginning – I would have gone for it straight away.”

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How a healthcare communication startup combined grant funding and R&D Tax Credits to scale innovation across the NHS

CardMedic’s Challenge

CardMedic at a Glance

The Grant Funding Journey – Partnering with Venturenomix

The R&D Tax Credit Journey- Partnering with Leyton

Strengthen your claim