Investment and Campaign to help south west's small firms grow

Business Secretary Vince Cable today kicked off a wave of activity to help boost over 460,000 private sector businesses in the South West, including unveiling the first funding allocation from the British Business Bank's investment programme and launching a campaign to help small firms grow.

The first £45 million of funding is to be committed to Praesidian Capital Europe (£30 million) and BMS Finance (£15 million) to provide debt finance of approximately £125 million through their respective new funds. Once legal terms are agreed it is expected that both funds will start lending to small businesses in early 2014.

In addition to this, Vince Cable also set out other measures that will provide support to small businesses. These include:

• A new £1 million Sector Mentoring Challenge Fund that will enable firms to benefit from support and advice from experienced business people in their own field of work
• A £10 million synthetic biology start up fund from the Biotechnology and Biological Science Research Council (BBSRC) to help entrepreneurial scientists working in synthetic biology get their business off the ground
• The successful Growth Accelerator scheme, which provides specialised coaching to small businesses with high-growth potential, will have helped 10,000 firms in the coming weeks.

Business Secretary Vince Cable said:

“Today we have set out a comprehensive package of measures that will address the concerns of small firms.

“The first investments from the British Business Bank’s investment programme will provide choice to smaller businesses looking to secure vital finance to help invest. Alongside cutting red tape and increasing the take up of business rate relief, Government has already made significant progress in improving the business outlook for small firms and entrepreneurs.”

A new business support website, www.greatbusiness.gov.uk will also make it easy to access the services and products, including Manufacturing Advice Service, National Apprenticeship Service and Growth Accelerator, that help businesses grow. The website will be supported by an advertising campaign showcasing the very best in British small businesses, to help inspire other small businesses to take steps to grow. This is the first domestic use of the GREAT campaign.

Speaking about today’s announcement, Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, founder of Devon-based food producer, The Black Farmer, said:

"Small business is the backbone of Britain.  It plays a vital role in building the business future of this country both in terms of its contribution to the economy and employment.  As a small business owner, I am excited to support a campaign that is focusing its efforts on encouraging small business to see the bigger picture and have the confidence to set out plans to fulfil that potential."

Skills and Enterprise Minister Matthew Hancock said:

“Small firms are a vital driver of our economy’s success, so it is imperative we do all we can to ensure businesses don’t just survive, but thrive to compete in the global race.

“We have set out today the start of our ambitious plans to help small businesses realise their potential and the support available to them to help them grow. Government has an important role in providing a coherent package of measures to support businesses, but there is also a role for business-to-business support, with successful, growing small businesses talking to others about how exporting, hiring and business planning can take a business to the next level.”