Expansion East Kent - grants for business
17 November 2011
In October 2011, Kent County Council, with the support of the
Sandwich Task Force and the East Kent Districts, was successful in
our application to the Government’s Regional Growth Fund.
The approved RGF funding will provide – subject to contract -
£40 million in Government money to deliver Expansion East Kent, a
programme of direct grant support to businesses in Canterbury,
Dover, Shepway and Thanet districts.
The application proposed that Expansion East Kent will operate
three types of grant:
- Springboard grants of up to £25,000 for start-ups and small
businesses with less than 10 employees
- Larger Grants for Investment and Growth, worth up to £2.5
million
- Business Critical Infrastructure Grants, to support the
delivery of infrastructure projects which will benefit a number of
businesses such as High Speed rail line enhancement on the Ashford
– Ramsgate route.
All grants would:
- Be made against a specific project, which would be fully
appraised before a grant is issued
- Require matching investment. Expansion East Kent will only pay
for a proportion of total project costs. This proportion will vary
from 50% for some grants to small businesses to 10% for large
grants to major firms. A schedule of proposed grant rates is set
out in Annex 1. Matching investment could come from a variety of
sources, including firms’ own funds, bank loans and equity
investment.
- Need to demonstrate job creation and good value. All project
proposals will be assessed against clear criteria, which will
include the number of jobs created or safeguarded, additionality,
impact on existing businesses, the skills levels of jobs created,
impact on productivity and risk.
When will businesses be able to apply?
Although Government has confirmed that we have an allocation of
funding for the Regional Growth Fund programme, we still need to go
through a process of due diligence before we are able to launch
Expansion East Kent.
At present, we setup of the programme is underway, with the
grants becoming open to applicants in spring 2012.
Further information
If you think your company may be eligible for a grant, and have
a suitable project, please register your interest by e-mail to
enquiries@locateinkent.com
or call 01732 520700.