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The Business Voucher Scheme is part of Accelerate - Supporting Business in North Somerset Programme delivered by North Somerset Council and funded by the government’s Community Renewal Fund.
Businesses can choose a voucher of up to £2,500 to fund professional business support and equipment or join an established six-week Leadership Course with additional follow-on one-to-one sessions.
The programme gives businesses maximum flexibility to select their own business support provider and at a time to suit them. Cost is frequently a barrier to taking up professional support so the supplier will be paid directly by the programme. The professional business support or new equipment should be used to:
- increase productivity or turnover
- support new operations, processes, or product development
- create new employment opportunities and/or safeguard jobs.
All grants awarded through the Business Voucher Scheme can be match-funded by the business, so can act as a contribution towards more extensive support.
Alternatively, businesses can attend an established six-week Leadership Programme led by Alison Miles from the University of West of England and Aryas Consulting. This programme is open to business leaders at all stages of development with specific courses dedicated to starting, growing or developing your business.
Cllr Mark Canniford, the council's executive member for placemaking and economy, urged local businesses to take advantage of the new scheme.
He said: "This support will help businesses get professional independent advice, overcome some of the challenges caused by Covid and Brexit and make them more resilient moving forwards."
The first ‘Starting Your Business’ course will be held online and starts on Thursday 17 February. Visit https://innorthsomerset.co.uk/business-leadership-courses to find out more and book.
All applications for the Business Voucher Scheme must be submitted by Friday 29 April. For further details and to apply go to https://innorthsomerset.co.uk/business-voucher-scheme.
North Somerset Council, in partnership with local organisations, received more than £2.8m of government funding from the UK Community Renewal Fund. Accelerate, the Supporting Business in North Somerset Programme, is one of four projects delivering this investment in skills, communities and businesses, and supporting people into employment. Work is taking place during the first half of 2022. To find out more, go to www.n-somerset.gov.uk/crf.