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This spring is packed with events and support to help your business grow, read on!
This month we have positive news about general business support, and more information about some of the new programmes being funded by shared prosperity funds. We also have information about Creative Quarter Company Ltd which is now closed, including looking back at some the great work they have done.
The good news is that there is confirmed Department of Business and Trade funding to support a central “D2N2” wide Growth Hub that we currently work with. The East Midlands Chamber are working through the budget, but the hope is that this will allow core services to support businesses after June 2023 when EU funding stops. This is good news as shared prosperity funding hasn’t been allocated to this core service. The aim will be to have a service covering Nottingham using this funding, ahead of any decisions about business support under the proposed devolution for the region. This will deliver the following services:
- Continued dedicated telephone line as today – so any business in Nottingham (and across Derby, Derbyshire, and Nottinghamshire) can call 0333 006 9178 as now.
- There will continue to be a website that has all the main information about business support in the region https://www.d2n2growthhub.co.uk/. Information about all locally funded business support through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will be live on this site very soon.
- The local Nottingham business advisors (which can continue to be branded D2N2 Growth Hub Advisors) will be able to centrally record information about support they provide to businesses in the contact relationship management system. This enables our advisors to see what other support a business might have received from across the region
- Webinars and event programme – the training and events will be mainly online as this is cost effective, but where the budget allows there may be some in person events.
We are highlighting some of the new projects that Nottingham’s Shared Prosperity Funding will deliver:
Community Development
Nottingham City Council will utilise approximately £4m of UK SPF funding to support its community development objectives. Within these combined investment priorities, we have contracted with 12 organisations, groups and bodies whose activities support the development of Nottingham’s communities and the people who live within them.
With the key metric of Improving Pride in Place by 2030, the activity includes:
- Strengthening the social fabric of Nottingham.
- Promoting social inclusion.
- Reducing social deprivation, reducing the cost of living and encouraging social mobility.
- Developing community and neighbourhood infrastructure.
- Delivering life, vocational, financial and personal developmental skills.
- Offering engagement of economically inactive residents to support local regeneration.
- Contributing to Nottingham becoming a carbon neutral city by 2028.
Business Support for Low Carbon Sector and Support
Nottingham City Council has objectives to become carbon neutral by 2028. This will require a step change for both citizens and businesses. One of our city council Growth Hub advisor teams currently focuses on supporting the development of low carbon businesses. We plan to widen the work of that advisor to support all businesses to become carbon neutral.
As part of the city council allocation of the shared prosperity funding allocated to both Universities – Nottingham Trent University and University of Nottingham - have specific projects to support innovation in low carbon.
The University of Nottingham project by the Institute of Advanced Manufacturing starts 1st July 2023. The project will support businesses to develop bespoke new products, processes, or services including the manufacture of prototypes or small batches of components, product design support, or consultancy on design for manufacture, as well as working with businesses on digitalising their manufacturing processes and systems using the latest technology commercially available. A big focus of this will support manufacturing businesses achieve more sustainable production and deliver our city’s aspiration to become carbon neutral.
High Street Grants – funded by UKSPF
Nottingham has already allocated over £250,000 to support high street businesses and has supported over 50 retail shops and high street businesses with grants. The projects have delivered shop front improvements, marketing and energy saving schemes. They have been in the city centre retail area, with many in Sneinton Market, and several in neighbourhood centres including Bulwell, Sherwood, and Lenton.
The plan is to review the effectiveness of these grants and revise the scheme summer 2023, informed by learnings from round one. We will find out from grant recipients what was most useful and consult on a new scheme. Details will be announced in due course, but don’t expect any new grant scheme until later in 2023.
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Visitor Economy Support
Nottingham City Council has used part of its allocation of SPF to fund supporting the visitor economy. The city has commissioned Marketing Nottingham (which trades under the names Visit Nottinghamshire, Meet in Nottingham and the Nottingham Tourism and Travel Centre). The key areas of support planned are:
- Supporting the business, visitor and conference events sector.
- Campaigns to encourage visitors into the city. See example feature from Guardian Travel guide – with information about Robin Hood, Wollaton Hall, Trip to Jerusalem and City of Caves amongst others.
You can find an online version here p.54 - https://content.yudu.com/web/2q1af/0A2tond/TG110323/html/index.html
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Creative Quarter Company – has closed.
Nottingham City Council’s Director of Economic Development & Property, Nicki Jenkins, and Chief Executive of Confetti Media Group (part of Nottingham Trent University), Craig Chettle MBE, said:
“In the decade since the Creative Quarter Company was set up, it has been instrumental in a huge growth in creative digital industries focused around the east side of the city centre, boosting Nottingham’s economy by £1.2bn. It has played a central role supporting a range of cultural events and the transformation of the formerly run-down Sneinton Market into a thriving hub for independent businesses. We are delighted that it has done what it set out to achieve, and agree that the time is right for the company to be wound up and for us to seek different ways to work together for the benefit of the city and its communities. We’d like to thank everyone who’s worked for the Company who can be proud of the fantastic legacy they have left for the city.”
Sneinton Market is one of the success stories from the Creative Quarter. It will remain open and has a positive future, and we wish the current and future traders there the very best as they grow and develop a future, now without the Creative Quarter Company, but still open, vibrant, and trading.
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Are you a key decision-maker for a small business planning for growth and success?
Nottingham Business School’s government-subsidised Help to Grow: Management programme has helped hundreds of leaders, take time away from daily operational pressures to think about the future needs of their business including:
✅ Building a more resilient business
✅ New ways of retaining and engaging employees
✅ Better financial management
Help to grow is a 12-week course designed to fit around existing work commitments with a blend of online and face-to-face workshops. Offering unrivalled networking opportunities as well as mentoring from expert business leaders, the programme is a must for senior executives wanting to future proof their organisation. With upcoming cohorts in April and May, find out more about how Help to Grow at Nottingham Business School can support you to help your business achieve more: www.ntu.ac.uk/helptogrow
NBV’s 3-day Nottingham Urban Starting in business programme is being delivered online so you can attend in the comfort of your own home or if you would prefer to attend at our Enterprise Centre in Nottingham appropriate protocols are in place to ensure your attendance will be within a safe environment.
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