A fund that can support start-up businesses in Warwickshire, launched by Warwickshire County Council in June 2022, has already awarded more than £1.3million in loans.
The Local Communities & Enterprise Fund (LCE) was created by Warwickshire County Council to fill a gap in the loans market at a time when mainstream lending was difficult to access.
It has now supported 26 businesses with £1,361,201 in loans which has enabled growth and led to the creation of jobs and new enterprises. A total of 98 jobs are forecast to have been created by LCE funding with a further 125 jobs safeguarded while four brand new businesses created have started up.
The LCE, delivered by Coventry and Warwickshire Reinvestment Trust (CWRT), is part of the County Council's £90million Warwickshire Recovery and Investment Fund (WRIF), created to aid the economic recovery of the county post-Covid.
Among businesses to have benefited is Rugby-based start-up catering business Selbi Food and Creations. The company was seeking support to raise finance to fulfil plans to open an African and Caribbean catering business in the town and was referred to CWRT by Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce.
The experienced team at CWRT provided Selbi’s with a personalised approach to ensure they could access the most suitable funding to meet their needs.
Selina Siey, Director at Selbi Food and Creations, said:
“I have worked in the food industry for over 10 years and decided to start my own business. I applied for the government’s start up loan scheme but was declined and after that was struggling to access finance.
“My business is at a very early stage and applying for funding can be overwhelming, I’m so grateful that CWRT was able to assist my small business by helping me to apply to the Local Community and Enterprise Fund.”
Warwickshire County Council Portfolio Holder for Economy & Place, Cllr Martin Watson, said:
"It’s great to see that the Local Communities & Enterprise Fund is continuing to identify and fill gaps in access to finance within Warwickshire by supporting the catering industry, which we know is vital in a county with such a strong tourism economy.
"The LCE is an integral part of our groundbreaking Warwickshire Recovery and Investment Fund and we are delighted that it has proved so effective in supporting small businesses like Selbi Food and Creations.
"Warwickshire’s small businesses power our county's economy and communities and the LCE will continue to support these as they consolidate and grow post-Covid while also helping other entrepreneurs to turn their ideas and skills into new small businesses.
“The LCE is an excellent example of the County Council putting our community powered approach into action. We are stepping forward to support businesses and social enterprises to make a real and lasting impact within their communities.”
The LCE fund is open to all business sectors, but priority is given to those particularly significant within the Warwickshire economy. These include Advanced Manufacturing & Engineering; Digital Creative & Digital Technologies; Culture, Tourism & Hospitality and Low Carbon Technologies.
CWRT supports businesses that may have not accessed finance for their business before or maybe facing barriers in receiving support. Reach out to CWRT’s friendly team to discuss your options and learn more about their funding options at www.cwrt.uk.com.
To find out what other support is available to your business, please call CW Growth Hub on 0300 060 3747.
For more information on Business Finance Week please visit www.british-business-bank.co.uk/finance-hub/business-finance-week/.