Council cash supports local small business

A £600,000 pot of cash to support small businesses and help encourage economic growth and job creation has been announced by Warwickshire County Council.

The cash is part of a £2million package of support approved by the council in October 2015 available to small businesses up to March 2018. WCC has so far awarded grants worth a total of £437,736 to 21 firms under this scheme.

The grants, worth between £5,000 and £35,000, are available to small and micro businesses with plans to grow, either by employing more staff or increasing turnover.

They are designed to help firms finance capital assets such as buildings, plant, machinery and equipment.

Cllr Izzi Seccombe, leader of Warwickshire County Council said: “Small businesses play an important role in boosting growth and creating jobs.

“I regularly meet companies across our region and hear first-hand how grants like this are helping them flourish. “Small and micro businesses are responsible for nearly half (46 per cent) of the job creation in the West Midlands region. That’s why we must continue our drive to provide the support they need to scale-up, and grow.”

The county council grants are part of a wider package of finance available to support Warwickshire businesses including small business loans (delivered in partnership with Coventry and Warwickshire Reinvestment Trust), ERDF investment grants, ERDF low carbon grants, rural development grants and LEADER grants in North Warwickshire.

For more information about the WCC grants or to check the eligibility of a project, visit: www.warwickshire.gov.uk/businessgrants or contact Warwickshire County Council’s Economy and Skills Group on 01926 412709.