“Invest to Grow has provided a great opportunity to access investment capital, which has propelled us forward in a way we would not have been able to do organically.”
“The Invest to Grow grant funding and support contributed to us achieving our planned growth and strategic objectives and we are now in a position to explore more opportunities.”
Invest to Grow is a grant and loan fund designed to support private sector businesses across the East Midlands to innovate, grow and create jobs. The fund welcomes applications from all types of businesses ranging from large companies to SMEs including partnerships and sole traders. The only exclusions being professional services, agriculture and retail businesses (which includes shops, restaurants, cafes and pubs).
What can you get?
Grants, loans or a mix of both, according to the needs of the business, are available for around 30% of the total eligible project costs with the business having to find the balance.
There is a minimum award size of £15,000 where the project value will be no less than £50,000. With the maximum award size at £250,000 although higher awards can be considered for projects offering exceptional value for money.
The types of project that Invest to Grow may support include:
- Businesses wanting to develop or improve their products and related services.
- Businesses looking to expand the business due to operating at capacity and having to turn away potential customers.
- Innovation in products, processes and systems that will result in business and supply chain efficiency, resilience, growth and profitability.
Eligible costs can include:
- Land and building costs
- Equipment costs
- Machinery costs
- Operating costs, including costs of materials, supplies and similar products incurred directly as a result of the project
- Costs associated with training the workforce to introduce the innovation into the production process of the company. Including materials & supplies, travel expenses, tools and equipment used for the training
- Cost for research or technical knowledge
(Invest to Grow is unable to support businesses looking to include significant staff or overhead costs)
If you would like further information please visit www.derby.ac.uk/investtogrow, email or call the Invest To Grow enquiry line 01332 597907
April 26th, 2017
