Buxton Business Breakfast on accessing slice of £933,000 rural business funding

Places are still available for a free funding information event this Wednesday (September 30), designed to aid small rural businesses in accessing £933,000 in development help – as part of the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership’s plan to boost economic growth.

The Funding For Business Breakfast Event – joint-funded by High Peak Borough Council and D2N2, the Local Enterprise Partnership covering Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire – will take place at The Old Hall Hotel, The Square, Buxton, Derbyshire (SK17 6BD) just off of the A53 near Buxton’s Pavilion Gardens. The event will run from 8.45am until 11.30am and is free to attend.

D2N2 – a partnership of business, local authorities, skills and training providers, and community organisations tasked with boosting economic growth across Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire – is making £933,000 available; to help new or established small or micro businesses in rural areas to expand and create new jobs. The current funding call – available through the European Agriculture Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and running until November 28 – will aim to create at least 68 new jobs in the area and boost tourism and visitor numbers, increase the turnover of businesses and increase productivity in the rural economy.

Buxton’s Old Hall Hotel, where the event will be held

More than a third of the D2N2 area’s total of 880,000-plus jobs are in rural local authority areas but according to DEFRA (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) problems for the rural economy can include reduced income among farmers, lower than average wages and difficulties in finding business investment.

The recently announced EAFRD funding in the D2N2 area is designed to help address these issues, providing capital grants to fund activities including:

• farmers diversifying into non-agricultural activities such as tourism or an attraction to create jobs;
• rural food and drink manufacturers, for example craft breweries looking to increase production;
• the construction of workshops or investing in new machinery, to enable a rural business to expand.

Grants will range in size from £35,000 to approximately £140,000 and can cover up to 40% of a project’s total costs. Projects must have a total value of at least £87,500 to be eligible for funding.

The above event will feature more detailed information on EAFRD funding in the D2N2 area, with a Q and A panel available to answer any questions.

Attendees can also book a one to one session with a specialist advisor to discuss ideas and receive guidance as to the application process for EAFRD funding.  

For more details, and to book onto the above event, click the link below.

www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/funding-for-business-breakfast-event-high-peak-tickets-18435197171

Further information sessions about the EAFRD funding and how to access it will be held on:

Thursday October 8, 5pm to 7pm – Bolsover District Council, The Arc, High Street, Clowne, Derbyshire, S43 4JY. To book online go to – www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rural-eafrd-funding-workshop-bolsover-tickets-18431871223

Thursday October 15, 4pm to 7pm – Council Chamber, Gedling Borough Council, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Nottingham, NG5 6LU. To book online go to – www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rural-eafrd-funding-workshop-south-nottinghamshire-tickets-18453283267

Those unable to attend the sessions can find out more about the EAFRD funding from the D2N2 Growth Hub team, on 0333 006 9178 or email info@d2n2growthhub.co.uk , or via Government websitewww.gov.uk/european-structural-investment-funds/business-support-call-in-derby-derbyshire-nottingham-and-nottinghamshire-08rd15bs0001

For more information on how the D2N2 LEP is using European funding to boost the economy and jobs numbers in its areas see website www.d2n2lep.org/EUFunding

Tweet