Business support and funding
We're here to help you with your business. We work in partnership with the following organisations to help you get the support you need to help make your business a success and get the investment you need to expand.
Read and download our Business Support Guide which gives you all the information you need to find out how we can help you and the services we offer your business.
Below are a number of links to organisations and funders to help you make a success from your business.
Read our business support guide
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Download our Business Support GuideStarting a business and advice on expansion
Thinking of starting a business? Need help to grow and expand your existing venture? Cumbria Growth Hub is a great place to start when it comes to specialist business advice, no matter what stage of the process you are at or what sector you are in. Best of all, a huge range of their activities are free or subsidised.
Set up by its close partners, Cumbria Chamber of Commerce in 2012, the Growth Hub is considered the one-stop-shop for business support, bringing together a huge wealth of information into one place. Their online support ranges from reviews and diagnostics, action plans, 1-2-1 advice, networking, workshops, events and links to other business support initiatives.
To date, the Growth Hub has worked directly with more than 6,800 businesses, around 2,000 benefiting from intensive assistance. This has created or safeguarded 6,285 jobs and generated an estimated £280 million GVA.
For more information on their business support activities or just for a quick, informal chat, get in contact on 0844 257 8450 (call for free), email info@cumbriagrowthhub.co.uk or visit their website https://cumbriagrowthhub.co.uk/.
The Growth Hub works closely with all of Cumbria's district councils and will ensure that once your business is ready to get off the ground, any statutory or regulatory queries are passed on to us directly.
We can help you find a property to help set up or expand your business. Click on the link below to go to our database of empty commercial properties in Allerdale.
Find an empty commercial property
Why not also see if the New Enterprise Allowance scheme can help you.
Knowledge sharing
The BEC Business Cluster (BECBC) is an organisation with members from SMEs to global companies with business interests in West Cumbria. BECBC member benefits include networking, promotion, knowledge sharing, specialist sector groups and relationship development with key stakeholders in the supply chain and Cumbrian economy.
Join in the events organised by the Business Growth Hub , or join the TEDx talks in the area.
Funding for your business
The Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership is the key organisation through which the government provides money for economic development. The main business development organisation in west Cumbria is BEC .
There are also many other ways in which you can get funding from central government and there is the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund as well as Enterprise Answers and Cumbria Community Foundation .
Need training?
Allerdale has a number of training organisations which can help to get your workforce the skills it needs to succeed.
- Lakes College
- University of Cumbria
- Centre for Leadership Performance
- Government support for apprenticeships
