CONNECTED PLACES CATAPULT

Their core work

Connected Places Catapult is a UK government-backed innovation centre focused on making cities smarter, more sustainable, and better connected. They work at the intersection of urban infrastructure, mobility, and clean energy — helping cities adopt integrated digital solutions for transport, energy efficiency, and citizen engagement. Their practical contribution to EU projects centres on deploying and testing smart city technologies in real urban environments, from shared mobility platforms to air quality interventions and historic district regeneration.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their early H2020 period (2016–2018), Connected Places Catapult focused on deploying tangible smart city technologies — shared digital infrastructure, e-mobility, energy efficient districts, and multimodal transport services. From 2019 onward, their work shifted toward softer but strategically important themes: air pollution mitigation through behavioural change and green infrastructure, transdisciplinary co-creation with citizens, and the regeneration of historic urban areas as innovation hubs. The trajectory shows a move from technology deployment toward place-based urban transformation that blends environmental, cultural, and governance dimensions.

They are moving from pure technology integration toward place-based urban regeneration that combines environmental quality, heritage preservation, and citizen co-creation — a direction well aligned with EU Mission on Climate-Neutral Cities.

How they like to work

Connected Places Catapult operates exclusively as a project partner or third party — they have not coordinated any H2020 projects. With 97 unique partners across 21 countries, they plug into large, diverse consortia rather than leading them. This makes them a reliable implementation partner who brings urban testbed access and applied innovation expertise without seeking to steer the overall project direction.

Broad European network spanning 97 unique partners across 21 countries, reflecting their involvement in large-scale demonstration and coordination projects. No narrow geographic cluster — their partnerships are spread across Western, Southern, and Central Europe.

What sets them apart

As one of the UK's Catapult centres — government-funded technology and innovation accelerators — Connected Places Catapult occupies a unique niche between public sector urban planning and private sector technology deployment. They offer access to real-world city environments for testing smart solutions, which is difficult for universities or private companies to provide independently. For consortium builders, they bring the credibility of a national innovation centre combined with hands-on experience integrating energy, transport, and environmental systems in living urban settings.

Highlights from their portfolio

• Sharing Cities
  Largest project by far (EUR 954K to CPC), a flagship EU smart city lighthouse demonstration covering integrated energy, mobility, and digital infrastructure across major European cities.
• HUB-IN
  Most recent and longest-running project (2020–2025), signalling their strategic pivot toward heritage-led urban innovation and entrepreneurship.
• iSCAPE
  Demonstrates environmental expertise beyond digital infrastructure — focused on practical air pollution control through green infrastructure and citizen behavioural change.