Cultural Recovery Fund emergency funding
The government is providing exceptional emergency funding to culturally significant organisations that were financially sustainable before Covid-19 but are now at imminent risk of failure. If this is you, you can seek permission to apply for this fund from today, Thursday 8 July. If given permission to apply, you must submit an application within 5 working days of permission being granted.
Cultural organisations can apply for between £25,000 and £3 million. Applicants must be able to demonstrate, via cashflow forecast, they are at risk of no longer trading viably within 12 weeks of the point of application.
This is a rolling programme and applications can be submitted between 15 July and 14 October 2021 with decisions communicated within six weeks.
It’s important to note that before you can start an application you need to create a user account and applicant profile.
If you do not have a profile in the online application system, you will need to set one up. It can take a few days to validate profiles, so if you are planning to seek permission to apply, please do this immediately.
If you need any help with your application please call our business helpline on 023 9284 1641.
Portsmouth Business Week closing event
The News is rounding off the first ever Portsmouth and District Business Week with a special live forum looking at what makes the city a success.
The question and answer session will be hosted by editor Mark Waldron, who will be in conversation with key figures from the local business community from 11am to noon tomorrow, Friday July 9. Mark and his guests will be looking back on the highlights of the week and reflecting on The News Business Excellence Awards, which will have taken place the previous evening at The Guildhall.
Tune in live on Friday at 11 on the News Facebook page.
Back the future with Crowdfunder
If you have ideas that will make an impact to climate change, don’t miss our online event on Thursday 15 July at 7pm, as we’ll be revealing how you can win a share of £30,000 to make your own idea happen for real!
Sign up for free and join us for an evening of fun, inspiration and most importantly a proactive response to the climate emergency.
This event is part of Crowdfunder’s #BackTheFuture initiative, to foster a culture of and create a space for positive solutions to tackle the world’s greatest challenges.
Are you ready for #VFS21?
The fastest growing innovation programme in the south is back with it’s next big annual showcase. We invite the region’s innovators, entrepreneurs, investors and businesses to come together in one place on one day to celebrate our incredible innovation ecosystem, showcase the latest technology, share thinking and explore new ideas. This interactive, one-day conference features great speakers, seminars, workshops, and demonstrations of the latest technology and innovations.
The event takes place on 21 October 2021 in the Ageas Bowl, Southampton.
More information and tickets here
Local company gains export deal
Southsea-based company Yarty has secured a contract to supply a German distributor, specialising in Artisan Fine Foods, with its vinegars and cordials.
This deal also allows them access other parts of the EU.
All products are handcrafted in Southsea using local fruit whenever possible.
The company was helped with export advice by our business support team. If you need any advice give them a call on 023 9284 1641.
GetSet for Growth is returning to the Solent!
Getset Solent is a business support programme delivering specialist, fully funded access to finance and marketing support to help businesses with the potential and ambition to grow, through a range of engaging workshops, 1:1 sessions and support to access the GetSet Solent Grant Programme.
The programme focuses on helping businesses overcome the two biggest barriers to growth – generating sufficient profitable customers and accessing finance. We aim to increase your knowledge and skills, giving you the clarity and confidence to achieve your growth potential.
They have a range of events to let you know how you can get involved.
National recognition for seafront projects
Landing Craft Tank 7074 – which now enjoys pride of place on Southsea waterfront at the D-Day Story museum – has been named as the restoration/conservation project of the year at the national Museum and Heritage Awards.
Judges ruled the scale of the restoration as ‘astonishing’ and ‘brilliantly delivered.’
Elsewhere on the seafront, Southsea Coastal Scheme’s project team was a finalist in the awards for its sensitive approach to restoring Long Curtain Moat – one of the last surviving parts of Portsmouth’s town fortifications – to its former glory.
Charging Ahead to Net Zero event
The government has brought forwards the ban on petrol and diesel vehicles to 2030, but we recognise that the transition to electric vehicles can seem a little overwhelming. This is why NatWest has formed an offering with Octopus Energy.
Together, they want to help make it easy for businesses and individuals to transition to a net zero carbon future in a cost effective way.
They are holding an event on Wednesday July 14 at 10am where they will have speakers from NatWest’s Future Mobility Group, Lombard Vehicle Solutions and Octopus Energy. Topics covered will include: charging infrastructure, funding solutions, renewable energy tariffs and access to some of the latest technology and platforms such as solar, battery storage, the electric juice network and the integrated fleet management platform making charging and expenses easy for your business.
Life Sciences Investment Programme
The Life Sciences Investment Programme, previously announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, has opened for applications from fund managers.
The UK is a world leader in life sciences however there is a lack of later-stage funds investing consistently at scale into the life sciences sector. British Patient Capital’s new programme will bring more large-scale specialist UK-focused fund managers to market, increasing the supply of venture growth finance to UK life sciences companies.
Through the Life Sciences Investment Programme, British Patient Capital has been allocated an additional £200m to make cornerstone commitments to later stage venture growth funds which are focussed upon the UK’s life sciences sector.
Coronavirus loan schemes benefit businesses across the South East
New data published this week shows that businesses across the South East received a total of over £10bn in funding under the government’s two largest Covid-19 loan schemes, the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS). The schemes provided financial support to businesses across the UK impacted by the Covid-19 outbreak, closing for applicants at the end of March 2021.
