New growth-focused business support to fuel the local economy

New growth-focused business support to fuel the local economy

Growth Works launches a new season of strategic growth support and grant funding, starting this October. These expert masterclasses and courses are a direct response to research highlighting top challenges faced by growth-focused businesses across Cambridgeshire & Peterborough.

Early diagnostic research based on high growth and growth ambitious businesses across more than 20 different sectors in the region highlights sales and marketing strategy, access to growth finance and finding and retaining the right people as core barriers to their growth.

These findings mirror recent research published by the Scaleup Institute that identified high-growth businesses as significant contributors to the UK economy both nationally and locally.  In 2018 they added £1 trillion to the UK economy – 50% of the total SME economy. They employed 3.5 million, had an average turnover of £29.5m and continue to outperform the economy as a whole.

Particularly as businesses power up their activities in a post-lockdown, post-Brexit economy, this data indicates that businesses recognise the need to remain agile to an evolved yet unconfident market, with heightened competition and a growing concern over access to skilled talent.

Growth Works – backed by the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority and the Business Board – is a business growth service set up to help businesses in the region to accelerate their growth through strategic growth support and consultancy, access to talent and apprenticeships, and providing critical revenue and capital investment.

Their Growth Coaching service launches its new season of programmes to enable businesses to build on their capability, capacity and strategic focus to overcome barriers to accelerated and sustained growth.

The Growth Coaching service also continues to support businesses with access to grant funding so they can buy in external expertise to help them grow or purchase much-needed capital to increase their productivity – with £6m available to invest in growing businesses in the region.

Austen Adams, Chairman of the Business Board, said: “Supporting our brightest and most exciting businesses to grow faster, stronger and more sustainably is at the centre of the Business Board’s ambitions vision for our region. We know there is still much untapped potential across every part of the region and Growth Works’ role is to help business leaders realise and then unlock their full potential to accelerate the rebound and regrowth of our economy while creating exciting opportunities for workers and learners. These masterclasses and courses are a great way for businesses to engage with Growth Works and find out how we can help them achieve their goals and unlock funding.”

Bev Hurley, Strategic Lead of Growth Coaching service, said: “We are excited to announce our Autumn support programme so that growth-focused businesses – both large and small, old and new – can get the dedicated support they need to survive and thrive. The combination of strategic growth expertise from entrepreneurs and business leaders who have lived through the challenges they face, with revenue and capital grant funding to unlock growth, is a powerful opportunity to take high growth and promising growth businesses in the region to the next level.”

For more information on strategic growth support available through Growth Works, please visit: https://growthworkscoaching.uk/our-services

Growth Works is a transformational business growth service that has been set up to support the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority in delivering jobs and business growth to the region.

Their Growth Coaching team works with high growth businesses and growth ambitious businesses to help accelerate and sustain their success, including: Expert masterclasses and courses, 1-to-1 growth consultancy, peer learning and coaching, and 50% match grant funding to invest in external expertise or capital purchases. Their full service is fully funded.