In the context of our world at Buckinghamshire Business First, I would say: we can’t control external events that impact upon businesses, but we can provide the support that helps them navigate the waters, whether they be calm or choppy.

We do this in many ways, including through a series of partnerships that ensure that all the bases are covered when a business comes to us in need of support. In essence, either one of our team can directly help, or we know someone at another organisation who can.

So, who do we work with?

There’s Innovate UK, the national innovation agency. They have many innovation competitions open at any one time, applicable to all types of sectors, and they run specific projects that create links between businesses, academics and funders.

Enterprise Europe Network supports SMEs spanning 60 countries, bringing together 3,000 experts to help businesses export, connect with new partners for R&D activity, understand how to access finance, and plenty more.

We also work closely with the Department for International Trade (DIT) to ensure that every business that wants to export gets the support they need.

The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) focuses on support for SMEs, building a low carbon economy, and more. Through ERDF, Buckinghamshire Business First delivers grants through the Low Carbon Workspaces project to help businesses cut their carbon emissions and energy bills; and the Growth Programme, which delivers advice and grants to support those who wish to grow.

There’s also the Buckinghamshire Skills Brokerage, which brings together a business assessment tool and training vouchers to support up-skilling, which comes via the Education & Skills Funding Agency and the European Social Fund and is run in partnership with Adviza.

We have also woked with the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development to support rural businesses with grant funding through the LEADER Programme. This latest round of LEADER funding has been another resounding success and applications are now closed while the team work to deliver the approved grants to businesses.

Closer to home, our partners at the Buckinghamshire Thames Valley LEP work on attaining and utilising funding to support the infrastructure projects that make it easier for businesses to grow, while the Buckinghamshire Skills Hub connects the dots between business, education and skills with its WANNABE and Opps in Bucks platforms.

Putting you in touch with the right people

All of these organisations have two things in common:

1. They provide support and resources to help businesses succeed.
2. We at Buckinghamshire Business First can put businesses in touch with the right people at these organisations to ensure they receive the support they actually need as soon as possible.

Reach out for support in the following ways

Get in touch with our business support team to find out more about all of the above support. Email BusinessSupport@bbf.uk.com or call 01494 927130.

Visit our business support webpages for a raft of information and support, no matter what you need.