Small businesses across the Derbyshire Dales are braced for the triple whammy of UK recession, the ongoing energy crisis, and the end of June deadline when much needed European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) business support ends.
The ERDF programme backs projects that create jobs and local growth including the ENSCITE programme, jointly offered by the University of Derby and Aston University, helping firms in the automotive, aerospace and rail sectors.
Entrepreneurs and business leaders across the region have now added their names to an open letter from University Alliance to Chancellor Jeremy Hunt urging him to prioritise funding for small regional firms who are currently benefitting from the university-led scheme which offers workshops in strategy, leadership, and productivity.
Local business woman Deborah O’Donovan, CEO of Chater Smart, a startup executive recruitment firm in London and Derby, said: “Female entrepreneurs are much less likely to be backed by external investors so programmes like ENSCITE make a huge difference. Funding regional business support programmes is an essential part of the promised levelling up agenda.”
The open letter was sent to Jeremy Hunt last week from the University Alliance and backed by 300 business leaders across the Derbyshire Dales and rest of the UK who are hoping the government will agree to provide replacement funding before June to ensure regional businesses continue to grow, create jobs and thrive despite the looming recession.
