Grants

[Renniwano]

Just a quick question.. has anyone ever applied for a grant and been successful ??

My local council are receiving funding for SME growth in the local area and I am considering applying.. but wondered if anyone had been through the process before ?

[Justin]

I've talked to local agencies about this before. It's very different up here as we're in a micro economy and separated from the mainland. I was once offered 50% of setup costs for a particular business but this was strictly on the provision that I wasn't taking any local business away and would be bringing money into the island and also exporting goods away. I guess if you're offering something that no-one else is you stand a good chance. if you can show that you will create employment somewhere down the line as well as boosting local economy all the better

One thing to bear in mind, if you have a new venture and are looking to apply for grant help, I was recently told that you shouldn't start the venture in any way, spending any money etc. as this can jeopardise your chances of success. Like I say, things are quite different up here (it's also a matter of who you know)

[Renniwano]

I have heard similar Justin.. I have been advised so far that it's the ability to show assistance to the already available economy.. and potentially in the future be able to maybe provide employment

There's no details on the grants at the moment as we don't have them available for atleast another week or two.. all it states is the following available: Capital grant support is available up to a maximum of 28% of total eligible expenditure.

Investment in technology or processes that facilitate growth, improve resilience or create/safeguard jobs

Efficiency initiatives in the form of waste, water or energy efficiency, recovery or reduction

Investment in technology and processes that reduce the environmental impact of your operations

So.. thought it would be worth looking in to..

[smo]

We've applied for a Grant recently and on Friday got an email telling us we've been approved subject to X,Y,Z paperwork....i've not been told the amount yet or on what conditions it is given. There are loads of grants out there but they can be very picky as to the terms and also require capital matching for many.