ENTERPRISE agency Nwes has revealed that it helped more entrepreneurs to access finance last year than ever before.
Supporting new and growing businesses to secure finance through the Start Up Loan programme, in 2016 Nwes helped 204 people to obtain loans totalling over £2 million – twice as much as previous years, with the average loan to support new and growing businesses being £10,000.

Alongside business training, advice, and workspace solutions, Nwes is an official delivery partner of the Start Up Loan Company, a Government-backed initiative available to individuals looking to start or grow a business in the UK.

Since the first client received a Start Up Loan in January 2013, Nwes has helped a further 757 businesses to obtain finance, amounting to an incredible £5.4 million being lent to boost new and growing businesses across Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire.

Nwes smashed through the £5 million mark by supporting Start Up Loan clients like Stefan Battrick-Newall of ABN Consultancy (Norfolk) Ltd. Launching in April 2016, the business was founded with the aim of providing support for finance departments, and performance reporting to local businesses, and the Start Up Loan was critical to Stefan’s business dream.
“The loan was the difference between me being able to start my own business or not.” Stefan says. “Without it, I would not have been able to afford the start-up equipment and initial office costs. So without the loan there would be no business.”

Nwes Chief Executive, Kevin Horne says. “Having helped a record number of entrepreneurs access finance in 2016, we are hoping to substantially exceed the lending in 2017.

I would encourage anyone wishing to start or grow a business to get in touch to find out how Nwes and the Start Up Loan programme can support you.”

Nwes has helped to secure loans for all types of businesses over the years, and has supported many new and growing businesses across the eastern region. In 2014 Nwes helped with the successful loan application for a King’s Lynn partnership to start a care agency. The business continues to go from strength to strength and they now have 48 staff. A more recent business launched with the support of Nwes and Start Up Loan Company is a new Spanish Tapas Restaurant, which will be opening in Cambridge in early 2017.

Nwes Start Up Loans Referral Coordinator, Polly Williams says. “Nwes are proud to be a delivery partner of the Start Up Loan Company. “We assist our clients to develop their business plans and financials, with either attending our workshops or one to one advice sessions, which helps the clients to have the confidence to apply for a low cost loan.”

Start Up Loans is a government-backed mentoring and low-interest funding programme for business trading for less than two years.

For more information about Nwes and Start Up Loans, visit https://www.nwes.org.uk/ or contact 08456 099 991 [email protected]