Funding and Finance News & Opportunities
Within this page, you will find a whole host of funding opportunities that range from Summer 2022 to 2023… A lot of information is included below, but should you have any questions on, do not hesitate to email us your queries (lowcarbonbusiness@derby.ac.uk).
NatWest Springboard to Sustainable Recovery
The NatWest Springboard to Sustainable Recovery report explains how SMEs could capitalise on a £175 billion revenue opportunity by focusing on decarbonisation. Natwest also provide a useful online grant finder service called Swoop.
Novel, low-emission food production systems: feasibility studies
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £16 million to deliver resource efficient, low-emission food production systems. Including alternative proteins and total controlled environment agriculture. Closing date for proposals is 19th April 2023.
Innovate UK Creative Industries Grant
UK registered micro and small businesses in the creative industries sector, can apply for this Creative Catalyst funding up to £50,000 with a package of support to grow their business.
Open to single applicants only. Closing date is 15th February 2023.
Derbyshire Dales Shared Prosperity Fund
Derbyshire Dales has been allocated a total of £2.7m up to March 2025 to support business diversification, growth, adaptation and long-term resilience as well as community projects which help strengthen local communities and foster local pride. Business Growth Grants are available for green and environmental engineering projects worth £40-100K and Community Resilience Grants for local action to reduce carbon emissions and promote behaviour change.
Green grants for Derbyshire firms
Changes made to the eligibility criteria for the Green Entrepreneurs Small Grants Fund mean more businesses can access funding to help implement green energy plans to reduce their energy costs. Small grants from £6,000 up to a maximum of £20,000 are available for solar panel installation, air & ground source heating, energy efficient boilers, LED lighting and electric vehicle charge points and more. Follow this link to find out more.
Be More Green
Discover the key takeaways from the CBI’s Be More Green event series and find out how businesses are:
- Embedding a green innovation culture
- Innovating to deliver a circular economy
- Innovating to improve energy efficiency
To access additional resources and tools to get started on your business’ green innovation journey, check out the CBI’s Be More Green toolkit.
BRITISH BUSINESS BANK
Within the past 12 – 18 months, the British Business Bank’s UK Network have been working in collaboration with key regional and national stakeholders to develop and deliver a programme of activities specifically targeted at improving access to early stage finance within each of the regions and nations of the UK.
Collaborating within the East & South-East Midlands to improve access to early-stage finance, including the following activities:
– D2N2 Road to Raise
– Leicster Startups
– Funding your Business Growth in Lincolnshire
For more information on the British Business Bank, visit there website here.
New Support to help boost business performance and growth
Small-to-medium sized enterprises (SMEs) can access support in developing leadership and management skills through two programmes recently launched by the University of Derby. The courses have been created to help those new to management, as well as senior managers and leaders. If your organisation is looking to create a sustainability strategy, these courses are an ideal opportunity to develop the leadership skills needed to succeed. Follow the links below to find out more:
NEW FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
Procurement of Support Services for Start Up Loans
In July 2022, the Start Up Loans Company launched its procurement for National, Regional and Specialist Business Support partners.
The Start-Up Loans Company provides personal fixed-interest loans and support to aspiring and early-stage business owners from across the UK who might be struggling to access other forms of finance.
For more information on this, please visit this link.
The following links will take you straight to the British Business Bank and PwC Raise webinars:
D2N2 GOVERNMENT FUNDING TRACKER
The D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership has launched a new interactive tool to track UK government funding announcements.
The tracker has been developed to help partners, policymakers, and others to navigate the complex and evolving landscape of government funding more easily by collating information on funding in one place. For more information, visit HERE.
START UP LOANS AND MORE FROM THE BRITISH BUSINESS BANK
In the Autumn 2021 Spending Review, the government announced its plans for spending over the next three years from 2022/23. This included a number of measures to support smaller businesses to be delivered by the British Business Bank.
Business Bank with the resources to help drive sustainable growth and prosperity across the UK, and to enable the transition to a net zero economy, by supporting access to finance for smaller businesses. Find out more HERE.
SMALL GRANT FUND
GREEN ENTREPRENEURS PROGRAMME
£500,000 funding available for the Small Grant Fund to support SMEs, sole traders, partnerships and charities that can demonstrate they have a project that will lead to local low carbon and are located in Derbyshire (excluding Derby City Council boundaries).
For application requirements and further details on the small grant fund, please visit this link.
