Expanding businesses in Stone and Staffordshire may be eligible for interest free loans to support plans & create new jobs.
Firms are being invited to apply for the latest round of finance available from Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Local Enterprise Partnership’s Growing Places Fund, to help finance any plans to buying or constructing new buildings, refurbishing existing premises, improving access or introducing environmental improvements
Promoting the growth of jobs and housing and tackling barriers to growth such as infrastructure and site constraints, the £11 million fund is aiming to boost economy in Stoke on Trent & Staffordshire. Firms may be eligible if their plans include a scheme worth £200,000 or more, and can repay the money withing four years of the project being completed. As long as the scheme complies with state aid rules no interest will be charged, with plans falling outside the rules paying only the lowest commercially appropriate level of interest.
Successful projects will need to demonstrate that they will generate economic growth in a short space of time with the right infrastructure in place. They will need to show that they have a solid business case, are deliverable in a reasonably short timescale, will create jobs or housing, and provide returns which can be reinvested locally by the LEP, in addition to attracting further private investment.
LEP chairman David Frost CBE said: “The Growing Places Fund is a great scheme providing interest-free or very affordable finance to help local businesses grow and thrive. This funding can really help to speed up businesses’ expansion plans and have a big impact on jobs and growth in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire. I would urge any firms considering growth plans and who think they could be eligible for support to check out the details on the LEP’s website and contact us if they would like further information.”
The latest bidding round for Growing Places Fund loans closes on October 28. Further details are available by clicking on the Growing Places Fund tab on the LEP’s website: www.stokestaffslep.org.uk Growing Places Fund manager Eric Henderson can be contacted on 01785 277231 or via email at eric.henderson@staffordshire.gov.uk
