Member Article

Funding available for C&W small businesses

Specialist finance provider Coventry and Warwickshire Reinvestment Trust (CWRT) has been accredited by the British Business Bank under its Recovery Loan Scheme.

CWRT will be able to provide small businesses in Coventry and Warwickshire with commercial loans of between £25,001 and £150,000, enabling them to invest and grow. The Recovery Loan Scheme (RLS) was initially launched in April 2021 to support businesses after Covid-19. Since then, CWRT’s lending under the scheme has helped safeguard 208 jobs, with 98 new jobs expected to be created.

The RLS has now been extended, however, it no longer requires businesses to evidence the impact of Covid-19 and provides the borrower and lender with a 70% government backed guarantee for those businesses that may have weak security.

Businesses that have received funding from the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) or the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBILS) are able to access the support but it may reduce the amount a company can borrow.

This is part of the overall support package available from CWRT, which includes delivering the Local Communities & Enterprise Fund (LCE), funded by Warwickshire County Council which was launched to help small businesses start-up and existing firms to grow.

One of those businesses to benefit from the LCE is Wellesbourne-based Turret Training, which is a leading UK and international provider of First Aid at Work courses and specialises in Pre-Hospital Trauma Training.

Simon Rogers, owner of Turret Training who received a considerable level of funding from the LCE fund, said: “CWRT has given me an opportunity to create working capital to build and develop the company by investing the money in medical equipment, marketing and future training qualifications for the team.

“I set up the business just before the pandemic, which meant we lost a contract in Dubai overnight and the company didn’t operate for 12-15 months.

“CWRT has been very understanding and its support, advice, patience and business acumen has been vital. We are now looking to develop providing medical cover at hospitality events.’’

Sheridan Sulskis, CEO at CWRT, said: “We are amongst the first five lenders announced to have been given accreditation so far under the new version of the RLS and we are looking forward to supporting more businesses that we may not have been able to support without RLS.

“The main objective is to provide access to finance to small businesses in all sectors as they look to recover and grow – whether that is for managing cashflow, investment or growth.

“We can offer support right across Coventry and Warwickshire for small businesses so I would urge owners to get in touch to find out how we can help.”

Cllr Martin Watson, Warwickshire County Council’s portfolio holder for economy, said: “Our region has a wonderful breadth of small businesses and they are integral to our economy and our communities. The LCE continues to support those businesses which are seeking to consolidate and grow post-Covid and also help other entrepreneurs to turn their ideas and skills into new small businesses.

“This is also an excellent example of putting our community powered approach into action. We are stepping forward to support businesses and social enterprises to make a real and lasting impact within their communities.”

Cllr Jim O’Boyle, Cabinet Member for Jobs, Regeneration and Climate Change at Coventry City Council, added: “This is a vital programme for local businesses, especially those that may struggle to access funding and I’m really pleased that Coventry and Warwickshire Reinvestment Trust are managing this loan scheme.

“It will be a boost for jobs in Coventry and will help safeguard them especially when businesses are operating in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis.

“We need to get the word out to the business community about the programme. We need to do all we can to help businesses to grow.”

The Recovery Loan Scheme is managed by the British Business Bank on behalf of, and with the financial backing of, the Secretary of State for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. British Business Bank plc is a development bank wholly owned by HM Government. It is not authorised or regulated by the PRA or the FCA.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Matt Joyce .