Lancashire Business View launches £4m fund for businesses

Fuse Fund, a two year, £4m Regional Growth Fund programme has been launched by Lancashire Business View with the aim of helping 600 young businesses realise their ambitious growth plans with competitive grants and business support.

Grants of between £5,000 and £50,000 will be offered by Fuse Fund, contributing a quarter of the overall cost for capital investment projects such as machinery, property improvement, building expansion and infrastructure improvement in businesses trading for less than 36 months.

Steve Cochrane, managing director at Regenerate Pennine Lancashire said: “Lancashire is the second largest economy in the North West, with a fantastic supply chain and great connections to cities like Manchester and Leeds. It's a great place to do business, and Fuse Fund will give ambitious companies that start up here an opportunity to grow and become competitive at a much faster rate."

"The great county of Lancashire has one of the largest economies in the north of England and is the second largest economy in the North West, generating £22.1bn of Gross Value Added, which is just under a fifth of all economic activity in the region.

To apply for funding firms will need to demonstrate that:

• They are based in or locating to Lancashire, including Blackburn with Darwen and Blackpool.
• Trading under three years
• Seeking capital investment
• Will create jobs

Within Lancashire there are 34 businesses per 1,000 population, compared to 37 nationally, and this RGF support will help close this gap. For further information and eligibility criteria visit www.fusefund.co.uk