Lancashire female business leaders’ coronavirus resilience an ‘inspiration’

By Boost Business Lancashire

14 Oct 2020

laura-and-emily-leyland-fresh-perspective.jpg

The resilience of a group of fast-growing Lancashire companies throughout the coronavirus crisis has been hailed as an ‘inspiration’ to the county’s economic recovery by business leaders.

Working with Lancashire County Council’s Two Zero Female programme, the seven businesses have avoided redundancies, been awarded Government contracts and secured growth funding to support their future expansion during recent months.

The fully-funded programme began in early 2020 and was delivered by Groundswell Innovation and Northern Power Women. It was originally dedicated to giving female leaders of fast-growing firms the tools to continue to scale up quickly but shifted its focus as Lancashire was hit by the effects of lockdown.

After receiving expert support and coaching to build short-term resilience and stay focused on their long-term future, all the companies are now considering external funding to support their future high-growth and several have already secured finance since engaging with the programme.

Becky Toal is managing director of Chorley based environmental consultancy Crowberry Consulting, one of the firms to take part in the programme.

She said: “The programme encouraged us to scrutinise our growth ambitions for the coming years and develop a high-quality plan to reach them. It also helped us to fully understand the types of external funding that a scaling businesses can access, and the confidence and mindset to secure them.”

Since taking part in the programme, Crowberry Consulting has been awarded a significant Government contract in partnership with global consultancy Arup, consulting the UK Government to deliver a sustainable UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow next year by implementing ISO 20121 Sustainable Events Standard.

The company has also secured a £5,000 enterprise grant from Enterprise Nation to support its future growth ambitions through investment in online training platform Teachable, and now offers three ISO courses on this platform.

Becky added: “The plan from here is to grow, grow, grow. We will be looking to recruit before the end of the year and we are also considering accessing venture capital funding in future.”

The support delivered by Two Zero Female included high-performance leadership coaching using video conferencing and virtual Dragon’s Den style pitching sessions to improve the visibility of the companies in the equity funding market.

Another business which has benefited from Two Zero Female is Fresh Perspective Resourcing. After securing a £35,000 Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF) loan using CBILS backing in April, the company has since secured another £35,000 CBILS loan.

The loans have helped the company to diversify through the crisis by offering online coaching for candidates, webinars during lockdown and will enable the company to push on with growing the team. Director Laura Leyland says this will position the business for sustainable growth over the coming years.

Amin Vepari, programme manager, Two Zero, said: “The resilience these companies have shown and their commitment to long-term growth plans despite the huge short-term challenges is an inspiration to all Lancashire businesses.

“We believe giving fast-growing Lancashire businesses the tools to realise their ambitions benefits the whole county and these companies have proven this through their dedication to retaining, and even looking to grow their staff base to allow them to capitalise on new markets during a difficult period.

“Figures show that female-led businesses struggle to access growth funding opportunities and the fact all of these businesses are now actively assessing external funding options is a testament to the success of Groundswell Innovation, Northern Power Women and the Two Zero Female programme.”

The businesses which benefitted from the Two Zero Female programme were: Fresh Perspective, Brilliant Trees Media, Crowberry Consulting, Education Business Partnership North West, Pie Mezzanae, Flavourfresh Salads, Hotfoot Design.

Latest news

1

Preston frozen dough brand has new celebrity shareholders Ant and Dec and Amy and Chris Cheadle

Preston frozen dough brand has new celebrity shareholders

18 Jul 2025

2

Wellbeing focused co-working space with its own pub in Burnley gets ready for launch Dave Scholes and Malcolm Ireland

Wellbeing focused co-working space with its own pub in Burnley gets ready for launch

18 Jul 2025

3

UK's pioneering Combat Air Flying Demonstrator is revealed Flying Combat Air Demonstrator

UK's pioneering Combat Air Flying Demonstrator is revealed

17 Jul 2025

4

A fresh brew for The Printed Cup Company The Printed Cup Company

A fresh brew for The Printed Cup Company

17 Jul 2025

5

Joe Diston from Beever and Struthers appointed to new Global IFRS leader for HLB International Joe Diston

Joe Diston from Beever and Struthers appointed to new Global IFRS leader for HLB International

17 Jul 2025

Background image for hub sign up block

LBV Hub

Leverage Lancashire Business View platforms

Post your news
Post your events
Post your offers
Build your network
Improve your SEO
Gain coverage in the magazine
Sign-up
Events
Lancashire Built Environment Conference 2025
BEC 315 X 315 Px
Networking
25 Sep 2025

Lancashire Built Environment Conference 2025

Blackpool Football Club, Blackpool, FY1 6HX

08:30 - 13:00

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course

Preston Campus, Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 17:00

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course

Preston Campus, Preston, PR1 2HE

08:00 - 17:00

Preston Tech Connection: Web3 is Dead. Or is It?
July Longer Banner.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Networking
29 Jul 2025 - 29 Jul 2025

Preston Tech Connection: Web3 is Dead. Or is It?

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

18:00 - 19:30

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: July
Longer July Banner.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Networking
31 Jul 2025 - 31 Jul 2025

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: July

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

10:00 - 11:30

Advantage: AI – A Workshop for Business Leaders – August 14th
Navy--Event Tile.png.png
LBV Hub Seminars
14 Aug 2025 - 14 Aug 2025

Advantage: AI – A Workshop for Business Leaders – August 14th

Door4 Office, Burnley Wharf, Burnley, BB11 1JG

09:00 - 12:00

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire
LBV Header (24).png.png
LBV Hub Networking
21 Aug 2025 - 21 Aug 2025

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire

Mytton Fold, Langho, BB6 8AB

11:30 - 14:15

Morecambe Bay Walk
Walk.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Awards
30 Aug 2025 - 30 Aug 2025

Morecambe Bay Walk

Arnside, CARNFORTH, LA5

09:30 - 14:00

Cumbria Business Expo 2025
https---cdn.evbuc.com-images-880461633-4862066883-1-original.20241022-110415.jpeg.jpg
LBV Hub Exhibitions
19 Sep 2025 - 19 Sep 2025

Cumbria Business Expo 2025

Carlisle Racecourse, Carlisle, CA2 4TS

09:00 - 15:00

Help to grow management course
Help to grow - barriers to growth.png.png
LBV Hub Seminars
26 Sep 2025 - 16 Dec 2025

Help to grow management course

Preston Campus , Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 15:00

North West Business Expo 2025
https---cdn.evbuc.com-images-880456273-4862066883-1-original.20241022-105445.jpeg.jpg
LBV Hub Exhibitions
24 Oct 2025 - 24 Oct 2025

North West Business Expo 2025

Bolton Stadium Hotel, Bolton, BL6 6SF

09:00 - 15:00

Lancashire Business Day 2025
241122lbvlancashiredaylhp0647web
Networking
27 Nov 2025

Lancashire Business Day 2025

Burnley FC , Burnley, BB10 4BX

12:00 - 17:00

Advertise with us

Reaching 50,000 members, our print, digital and event platforms offer a fantastic way to raise your business profile and help you grow.

Find out more LBV122 Online Graphic
Subscribe now

Weekly news bulletin