Ask the Local Expert

When you're running your own business, it can be difficult to find time to look in to business support opportunities such as grant funding. Often a quick web search can return a multitude of results that leave you asking more questions than you started with… How do you know where to start? Which ones should you apply for? Are you eligible? What's the application process?

The good news is that the team at Coventry & Warwickshire Growth Hub can direct you and answer some of those questions - saving you time and giving you confidence to start the application process, knowing it's the right route for your business and growth plans.

What are Grant Funds?

Grants are non-repayable funds, awarded following a successful application. They are usually designed to support a particular project within your business and to aid growth and help you achieve goals that may have otherwise taken quite some time to reach.

There are various business grants available across the UK. What's available and what you're eligible for may change depending on a number of factors, including (but not limited to): location, industry, project, how long the business has been trading for.

What's expected when you apply for a grant?

As with many things, when you're applying for grant funding, there is a process to follow and in the majority of cases there will be paperwork that you will be asked to provide.

Don't be put off! Many of the documents required may well be things you already have - and there is always support available to help you with anything you don't have (this might be templated documents, guidance notes, resources, support to sanity check application forms etc).

Some things you might be asked to provide include:

• A  business plan (ideally a current, revised plan, including details of the project you're seeking grant funding towards).
• A cashflow forecast (at least 1 year, but in some cases you may be asked to provide 3 year and 5 year forecasts too).
• Evidence of trading history (at least 1 year, but  in some cases they may ask to see trading history over a longer period where possible).
• A completed application form

What do you need to consider?

There are some things to think about before diving into an application for funding. Reading the background on the fund you're applying for and understanding the guidance notes is always recommended, so you don't get caught out later in the process.

Our top 4 considerations would be:

• Grants may not be paid retrospectively. So don't commit to orders or payments before you've identified what you might be eligible to apply for and understood the process. This way you don't run the risk of losing out on possible funding opportunities or making yourself ineligible right from the start.
• There may be required targets/outputs. Some streams of funding have outputs attached that need to be met in order to create a successful application. At the start of the process, you'll be made aware of these by the funders. Targets could include creation of new employed roles, carbon savings or sustained business growth. You'll need to think about how these targets fit within your project and future plans.
• Only partial funding may be available. How grant funds are delivered will vary across the UK. There are many instances where grants can only be delivered to partially support a project, meaning that you'd need to consider how you might fund your proportion of the project. You may need to explore savings, loans or finance routes to support your purchase.
• Funds may have limitations. You may find that some funders only support projects to a certain value, so there may be limitations on how much funding you can apply for at any one time, or how many times you can apply for the same fund in a given period. You'll be made aware of this at the start of the process by the funders.

How do you apply for a grant?

The best way to navigate grants and understand the application process, is to reach out to your local Growth Hub. In many cases, although they may not deliver the funding directly, the combined knowledge and experience they have will help you to identify eligible activity and work out which stream is best-suited to your business.

Following on from this, you'll then be connected to the funders directly and will have the opportunity to ask any further questions and gather all information you need to ensure this is the route you want to take. If they feel that your project is suited to the funds they deliver, they will invite you to complete an application form and talk you through the next-steps in the process.

Start your journey, take this short quiz to get going.