Partnership help for those with Vision for own business

A PARTNERSHIP of local authorities across Derbyshire has launched a project to encourage people in the district to set up their own businesses.

The “Vision Derbyshire Business Start-Up and Business Support Grant Scheme” is open to anyone about to take the plunge or just starting their business journey.

Vision Derbyshire has already assembled a team of local expert business advisers who will be there to offer free advice and support, while funding of up to £10,000 per applicant is also available.

Networking opportunities and help in securing a wide range of services necessary to help entrepreneurs turn their venture into a success will also be a part of the package.

The scheme has been launched in response to a boom in the number of new businesses being set up during the lockdowns, with more than 400,000 new start-ups emerging, and more than 2,000 of these are based in Derbyshire.

The partnership says that nothing on the scale of the Vision Derbyshire project has ever been launched in the county before and, unlike other business support schemes, it is targeting entrepreneurs and those aged between 17 and 30, or who are aged over 50 that lost their jobs or livelihoods during the pandemic.

Councillor Tricia Gilby, economic lead for Vision Derbyshire, said: “Councils across Derbyshire have been committed to doing all we can for our businesses through what has been an incredibly difficult time but, like places up and down the country, our local economy has been hit hard by the impact of the pandemic.

“However, out of hardship often come silver linings and it has also seen many people who were among the most badly affected launch their own businesses or make plans to go it alone.

“They are precisely the people that this Vision Derbyshire scheme is designed to help, so that together we can nurture the spirit of enterprise and entrepreneurship that has always burned brightly in Derbyshire in order to help the county’s economy to re-emerge stronger.

“We are delighted to be involved in this county-wide initiative and would encourage anybody who has considered starting their own business or who has taken the plunge in the past year to find out more about how Vision Derbyshire can help them to turn their plans into a successful and sustainable business.”

A funding pot of £550,000, which has been raised through Derbyshire’s involvement in the Government’s Retained Business Rates Pilot scheme, has been set aside to fund companies, with a range of grants available over the next two years.

To find out more about the Vision Derbyshire scheme, visit www. derbyshire.gov.uk/ visionderbyshirebusinesssupport or email Business@derbyshire.gov.uk