Access to finance: Getting a business grant

With a combined value of £50 billion, there are over 4,500 grants available to businesses in the UK - and a number aimed specifically at women in business. But currently grants worth £2.7 billion remain unawarded, with 96 per cent of small to medium-sized businesses not claiming the grants available to them. So how do you make sure your business takes advantage of any grant you could get?

Grants are available from over 600 sources, which include the lottery, private individuals, local, central, and national government, as well as the European Union. The money they give is awarded on several grounds; the most common are location, type of business, and what the grant is going to be used for.

Wayne Gibbins, manager at grants directory J4B, explains how to make progress:

"The first thing to do is find out what is available to your business type, in your sector and in your area of the country. Next, find help on navigating the maze of business funding and, finally, don't make the common mistake of ruling yourself out.

Finding and applying

"Business grants are not targeted at failing businesses, and there is no stigma attached to seeking grant funding; the funding is there to start up and develop a good business. Most business managers have enough work already without embarking on the hunt for a grant. Use your networking contacts for help. Check with colleagues, friends, former colleagues and all those you know in the same business about which grants they may have had and try to get tips about why their applications worked.

"Recognise from the beginning that grant applications take time. The forms are long, and the answers need research and care. Allot time generously, even for small sums. Many organisations have a contact who will give you advice on how to complete the forms, and offer specific information on what their grant-awarding body needs from you.

"Next, focus on your market. If you operate in a niche, or your idea is particularly unusual, you may be able to claim a grant which might not have many other applicants."

Stick to your business plan

"You should also update your business plan, and revise it every two months or so to keep it current. It needs to show that your market is growing, that you are making plans for the long term and that you can show that there is growth in your sector. Provide evidence of long-term thinking for the business.

"Next, you should be able to show how others in your trade area will benefit. Your application will be more successful if you can show that the grant will bring broader growth and economic significance to others in your sector too.

"Remember that a grant will not cover all your costs. Your business plan should show that the grant will boost your financial plans, not replace them. Bear in mind that most grants only cover 50 per cent of project costs.

"Grants aren't "free money." Once you are awarded the funding, you will have to spend it in certain ways, and continue to be able to show how the grant is helping your company grow."

Ask for help

"Last, but not least, take advantage of all the help on offer. Contact your local Business Link for advice, and use your solicitor and accountant for their help too. The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) or government websites, as well as EU sites, have grant listings.

"You can also use a grant-search website, such as j4b. Businesses can use the website to check what grants are available and through which bodies. The service is free to register and search and has subscription options for all business sectors with a tailored subscription-based alert service, which notifies client businesses of changes in available grants each month according to their company profile.

"Various funding focused on women in business is available in the j4b database such as the "Women in Business Loan Fund" from Bolton Business Ventures and the "Women into Enterprise Grant" from Glasgow City Council; other geographic areas will have similar schemes in the future."