Navigating the funding landscape can be a daunting prospect, not to mention a time-consuming task that many small businesses simply don’t have the time for.

Luckily, we’ve got our fingers on the pulse when it comes to both finding and securing funding for small business. Not only are we an established referral partner for the North East Business Support Fund (NBSL), we can also help you to access several other funding streams and tailored business support to help your business grow and achieve its goals.

Whether you need a new brand identity, a web design project, or a new marketing strategy, we can help you to identify the best support available to you and guide you through the application process.

SUPPLY CHAIN NORTH EAST

ADDITIONAL Consultancy grant funding now available for SME companies located in County Durham

The team at Supply Chain North East are delighted to announce additional grant funding is now available for SME companies located in County Durham.

The grant funding is for projects that require 3rd party consultancy support.

Eligible businesses can now access:

• Up to 40% funding towards business improvement projects costing between £2,500 and £4,000

Please note that this a timebound programme – all grant applications must be submitted and approved by March 31st 2021. The consultancy projects will need to be completed by June 30th 2021.

How to Apply

The quickest and simplest route is for you to complete the on-line grant application.

Examples of Possible Consultancy Projects Eligible for a Grant

Listed below are the main types of project that we can fund – if there is a project that’s not on the list get in touch and we’ll try to help:

• Business growth planning
• Accessing new markets
• ISO 9001 / 14001 / 45001 business readiness
• Product development / diversification
• Process improvement systems
• Marketing planning
• HR Strategy planning and development
• Strategy Development
• Financial restructuring
• Succession planning
• Supply chain related activities

NORTH EAST BUSINESS SUPPORT FUND

We’re pleased to be able to let you know that the North East Business Support Fund has been extended through to March 2023 and is now open again for Applications.

NBSL has secured further investment from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) to extend this popular regional business support scheme to provide £1.6m of grants to an additional 730 businesses.

The Offer

The programme will offer Grants for Business Improvement Projects that use External Expertise and the financial support will remain the same:

County Durham businesses:

• up to 40% funding for projects costing between £2,500 and £8,000

Northumberland or Tyne & Wear businesses:

• up to 35% funding for projects costing between £3,000 and £8,000

Main Eligibility Criteria

The business must be an SME with:

• fewer than 250 full time equivalent employees
• an Annual Turnover not exceeding € 50 Million and Balance Sheet value not exceeding €43 Million
• credible plans to grow / recover from the impact of Covid (staff or turnover)

If the business is involved in any kind of group structure – either being partially of fully owned by another businesses or having partial or full ownership of another business – NBSL would need details to establish eligibility.