News

Business leaders, social enterprises, and Third Sector organisations from across the Cambridgeshire region gathered in Peterborough (19 September) to hear about two new local government initiatives worth nearly £9.5 million, aimed at supporting growth, innovation and regional economic and social prosperity.

The launch event, led by Dr Nik Johnson, Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, and Cllr Anna Smith, Deputy Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, provided an opportunity for attendees to explore how they can access loans, digital resources, and strategic support funded by Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority and the UK Government.

The Combined Authority Business Growth and Social Impact Investment Fund represent a key part of the region’s economic recovery and transition towards Net Zero, building business growth, developing new infrastructure and increasing capacity within the Third Sector.

Mayor Dr Nik Johnson said: ‘By offering targeted support to local businesses and the Third Sector, we’re not just driving economic growth and creating new jobs, but empowering our communities to thrive and prosper. The resources we are putting in place today will fuel innovation and create lasting benefits for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.’

Small-to-medium sized businesses within the region who successfully apply for the programme will be able to access loans and equity investments between £100,000 and £500,000 over the next three years, with a focus on key sectors such as IT, Life Sciences, Agri-Tech, Advanced Manufacturing, and Green-Tech. This investment is expected to create or retain around five hundred jobs and contribute to reducing the regions CO2 emissions.

Third sector, community interest and social enterprise organisations who are eligible for the programme will be able to access up to £100,000, with funding aimed at helping to create or safeguard eighty-five jobs, while delivering wider benefits for local communities through enhanced social impact and sustainability. Funding applications will be administered by Allia and FSE on behalf of the CPCA.

Cheryl Weeks, Head of Funds South East and East of England at The FSE Group, said, ‘We are delighted to be working alongside Allia to deliver the CPCA Business Growth and Social Impact Investment Fund. We look forward to working with the wider business support ecosystem and the SMEs to help support their growth ambitions.’

Martin Clark, Allia Chief Executive. ‘As a long-standing member of the local third sector, Allia knows the challenges of growth and works to help those in the sector to start, grow, thrive and survive. Having the right forms of grant and loan funding is a critical component of this and we are confident there will be strong interest in the fund, which we hope will achieve some great growth and impact stories over the coming years.’

Deputy Mayor Cllr Anna Smith spoke at the launch and stated ‘This is such an important initiative which will help break down barriers to growth and allow more businesses to scale up. I’m excited that it also allows social enterprises, those businesses that operate for the good of the community, to grow and increase their impact.’

Article from: https://cambridgeshirepeterborough-ca.gov.uk/

Find out more about the CPCA Business Growth and Social Impact Investment Fund.

As appointed Fund Manager for the British Business Bank’s Investment Fund for Scotland (IFS) and South West Investment Fund (SWIF), The FSE Group is helping ambitious SMEs (small and medium enterprises) overcome hurdles to their growth, providing loans from £100,000 to £2million.

As a provider of finance  for business expansion, we’re more interested in your forecasts than your historic trading performance. As long as you can show that your business is growing and has gained commercial traction such as some sales, confirmed orders etc, we don’t mind if it is early stage, resurgent, recently changed ownership, or pivoting in a new direction.

Where mainstream finance providers will look for evidence that past performance can service your borrowings, we’re interested in the opportunity you are seeking to take tomorrow and not yesterday’s profit. We’re open to taking the time to explore the opportunity so, even if you’ve been unable to access funding before, come and talk to us.

We aren’t about ticking boxes for a computer algorithm to make a lending decision. We want to get to know you; we’re interested in the challenges you’ve overcome, the bumps in the road, and your ambitions. We want to hear your business story to date and understand the opportunity you are seeking to fund. Yes, we undertake desktop research to complement the information you provide to us but fundamentally our appraisal process is personal; no computer-generated responses.

We’ll provide you with a dedicated Investment Manager who will work with you to present the best possible case to get your funding over the line. Complexity in the transaction is likely to be a given in many of our deals and our team are well-qualified to deal with this. They’ll meet with you as much as it takes to fully understand the proposal and will help ensure it’s in the best shape possible before being reviewed by independent experts.  

Our relationship-led approach doesn’t end with the money landing in your bank account - we don’t lend to you and then forget about you. You will be supported by a FSE Manager to contact throughout your time with us. Many of our customers come back to us for further funding, sometimes because the original plan needs additional finance and sometimes to fund an entirely new strategy. We will always try and support you on your growth journey; we’re with you for the long term.  

Our funds exist to break down barriers to accessing finance, which means you don’t need assets as collateral. Unlike many mainstream lenders, we don’t rely on charges over property to be able to support you. We take a debenture (a charge over company assets) and a limited personal guarantee from the shareholding directors to underwrite their confidence in the growth forecasts of the business. We are transparent from day one with our security requirements.

Of course we will need to gain all the information needed to decide whether your business is one we can invest in. These are not grants; they are commercial funds providing loans that need to be repaid. Our industry professionals will be looking to support you while lending responsibly so we are thorough in getting to know you and your business; our due diligence is robust. That said, we’ll ensure this is clear and straightforward and if you’re not suitable for these funds, we’ll let you know quickly, steering you to alternative funding sources where appropriate.

At FSE we’re really proud of the work we do to engage with businesses from diverse backgrounds and from across the whole of an area where we operate. This includes less-experienced teams, those operating in hard-to-reach geographical areas, those with female leaders and people from ethnic minority backgrounds. We have really strong female representation amongst our leadership at FSE and we are committed to ensuring that diversity is reflected across the range of businesses we work with.

The British Business Bank’s Investment Funds operate as commercial funds with commercial returns required. Investment decisions are made by the fund’s appointed fund managers [The FSE Group], not the British Business Bank.

Aura Life, a provider of funeral services and funeral plan sales, has secured a £350,000 equity investment from the Coast to Capital Growth Fund via appointed fund manager, The FSE Group. The £2+million funding round, which also includes investments from the Oxford Innovation Fund and the FSE Angel Investor Network, will support business growth including the creation of 16 new jobs.

A fully regulated end-of-life planning company, Aura Life, has rapidly emerged as a market-disrupting funeral care provider in the UK as it seeks to address the logistical, financial, and emotional challenges faced by consumers in funeral planning.

Its digital platform simplifies the funeral planning process, providing clarity for families of the deceased, allowing them to focus on managing their grief and celebrating their loved ones without the added stress of logistical and financial burdens.

Dave Jameson, CEO of Aura Life, said: "This funding will enable us to further our mission of creating a society where planning for death is embraced as part of life. Our digital funeral planning service and end of life planning tools ensure that we can cater to the diverse needs of our clients during their most challenging times, and we are thrilled to have the support of The FSE Group and our other investors on this journey."

With funeral costs continuing to rise amidst a cost-of-living crisis, Aura Life offers a viable alternative by providing funerals at a fraction of the cost of traditional services. Their pre-paid funeral plans start at £1095 compared to traditional funerals, which can cost up to £6,000.  

Jonathan Day, FSE Investment Manager, commented: "Aura Life’s innovative approach to funeral planning is combined with an impressive management team and strong market potential. They have successfully navigated FCA registration and, in just over a year, driven sales of over £2m of funeral plans alone. We believe Aura Life is well-positioned to revolutionise the funeral care industry and provide significant benefits to families across the UK."

The direct cremation market, currently valued at around £700m, is growing rapidly with a 600% increase since 2020. With its strong sector partnerships, robust cremation network, and market disrupting funeral solutions for the tech age, Aura Life is poised to succeed in this expanding market.

Coast to Capital Growth Fund is part of Coast to Capital Funding Escalator, which provides eligible companies with loans and equity funding between £50,000 and £500,000 for activities that will deliver high-growth and employment opportunities.

Somerset based green energy tech business, Gridimp has secured £250,000 debt funding from the British Business Bank’s South West Investment Fund via funding partner The FSE Group.

The company helps businesses join the flexible energy markets to improve sustainability and efficiency using their innovative energy technology.

Their technological and hardware solutions allow companies to monitor their energy usage in real time, and the AI technology helps customers make informed decisions to lower their carbon footprint and reduce costs. This data also gives Gridimp the power to integrate greener energy sources such as wind or battery storage into the existing grid infrastructure.

Enabling customers to use the smart grid easily is critical to the decarbonisation of the UK’s current energy supply and helps providers meet the increasing demand brought on by new sustainable technology like electric vehicles. As even more sources of renewable energy become available Gridimp’s research and development will ensure they continue to meet the needs of an ever-changing market.

Richard Ryan, Co-Founder and Commercial Director at Gridimp, said: “The world is moving towards renewable energy and a more efficient and robust energy grid. We are ready to lead the switch over to a modernised system of power distribution and consumption, giving added access to revenue generating flexibility markets for businesses. We are proud of our products which have come about as a result of collaborations with partners across the globe and are delighted to have received this funding from the South West Investment Fund, which will support our business growth and enable us to employ more staff and move to an office that better suits our needs and growing team.”

The British Business Bank’s £200m South West Investment Fund covers the entire South West region and provides loans from £25k to £2m and equity investment up to £5m to help a range of small and medium sized businesses to start up, scale up or stay ahead.

Rob Ward, Investment Manager at The FSE Group, added:“Gridimp is emerging as a market leader in a sector which is undergoing a desperately needed shake up in terms of sustainability. The dedicated team of engineers, data scientists and energy experts are clearly passionate about what they do and the company’s visionary approach. We were impressed by how easily Gridimp’s technology can be installed and by the value provided to their clients. We wish the team every success for the future and have no doubt about the positive impact they will have on the energy sector.”

Paul Jones, Senior Investment Manager, British Business Bank, said: “Supporting local businesses which drive the UK economy’s transition to net zero is integral to the vision for the South West Investment Fund. Businesses like Gridimp demonstrate how technological innovation in the South West is enabling businesses to make informed decisions about how to reduce their carbon footprint and save money in the process.”

The purpose of the South West Investment Fund is to drive sustainable economic growth by supporting innovation and creating local opportunity for new and growing businesses across the South West. The South West Investment Fund is increasing the supply and diversity of early-stage finance for South West smaller businesses, providing funds to firms that might otherwise not receive investment and helping to break down barriers in access to finance.

Connekt Group, a Scottish owned independent electric vehicle (EV) charging network and commercial installation business, has secured a £250,000 Investment Fund for Scotland (IFS) loan via appointed Fund Manager, The FSE Group.

The funding will be used to develop Connekt’s first three rapid charging hubs, enabling the company to expand its proven hub model contributing to national sustainability goals and supporting the transition to electric vehicles.

The British Business Bank’s £150m IFS covers all areas of Scotland – Greater Glasgow, Greater Edinburgh, Aberdeen and North East, Dundee and Tayside, South of Scotland and the Highlands and Islands and provides loans from £25k to £2m and equity investment up to £5m to help a range of small and medium sized businesses to start up, scale up or stay ahead.

Connekt Group specialises in the installation and management of commercial EV charging solutions across various sectors, including hospitality and corporate offices. It boasts an impressive network reliability with a 99.13% operability rate, underpinned by real-time data monitoring. The company aims to fill the gap in Scotland’s currently unreliable EV charging infrastructure by offering dependable and accessible charging solutions, supporting the Scottish Government’s objective of widespread EV adoption by 2030.

With 14 million tourists visiting Scotland each year, Connekt’s strategic placement of charging hubs at key tourism locations positions the company for sustained growth.

Connekt Founder and Managing Director, Johnny Manning, said: “We are thrilled to receive this IFS loan via The FSE Group, which will help us play a pivotal role in propelling Connekt’s strategy in the rapid charging market whilst supporting Scotland’s green transition. Growth funding for early-stage businesses is limited but vital – with this support we are able to continue our work towards becoming a leader in the EV charging sector, driving the adoption of sustainable energy solutions across the nation.”

Jim Pritchard, Investment Manager at The FSE Group, added: “As the only privately-owned EV charging network in Scotland, Connekt is uniquely positioned in a high-growth niche, leveraging its reliable network and strategic market insights. Its robust management team, solid business model and strong growth trajectory present a compelling investment opportunity that we are delighted to support.”

Mark Sterritt, Director, Nations and Regions Funds, at the British Business Bank, added: “Smaller businesses have an important role to play in Scotland’s transition to net zero, with firms providing technology and infrastructure for decarbonisation at the heart of it. However, access to finance is key to supporting their growth, allowing them to scale and make the most of growing demand for their services. Connekt is a great example of the type of business with high-growth potential that the IFS was set up to support and we look forward to seeing the wider roll out of its technology.”

The purpose of the Investment Fund for Scotland is to drive sustainable economic growth by supporting innovation and creating local opportunity for new and growing businesses across Scotland. It will increase the supply and diversity of early-stage finance for Scotland smaller businesses, providing funds to firms that might otherwise not receive investment and help to break down barriers in access to finance.