Dear Colleague,
I am writing to inform you about an initiative BEIS has launched to make it easier for businesses to access the full range of Government support available. We are running a Business Support Campaign to help raise awareness of this whole of government initiative.
One of my Department’s core priorities is to make Britain the best place in the world to start and grow a business - a place where entrepreneurs know they can build on their ideas and achieve success. To help realise this ambition, the Government provides various tools, products, advisory services and funding streams. But businesses, especially micro and small businesses, often tell us that the current landscape can be difficult to navigate.
So, as part of our Campaign initiative, BEIS is bringing all of the various support together in one place, www.businesssupport.gov.uk. The support is categorised into four themes on the site, to help businesses find what they are looking for:
• Finance and business planning - including funding for new businesses and business growth, dealing with late payments, and equity and debt finance
• Leadership and Talent - including mentoring schemes, help with recruiting, developing leadership skills or joining a network.
• Innovation and Technology - including funding for innovation, adoption of new technology, intellectual property and finding partners for innovation.
• Exporting - including support for doing business internationally and expanding online.
The website provides links to local organisations which can understand the challenges and opportunities in that geographic area, such as local Growth Hubs and Local Enterprise Partnerships. The site also signposts the financial support on offer from the British Business Bank, which has supported 90,000 smaller businesses with over £7 billion in investment or loans. We will also be expanding start-up loans to give entrepreneurs the boost they need.
I would be grateful for your support in directing your interested constituents and businesses to the website and supporting our campaign. We want to help businesses realise their ambitions and save them valuable time by making it easier to search and apply for support.
Whether people are newly starting out as self-employed, proudly running a family
business, or on their way to creating the next household name, this Government is
committed to providing access to advice and support to businesses to help them grow.
THE RT HON ALOK SHARMA MP
Secretary of State for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy
