Finding out what funding, loans, or grants available in your sector can be a tricky issue. Often, you’ll have to trawl through government pages analysing if there’s anything available for you and your business. This can take hours of effort and time, and that’s before you even start the application processes. During the current economic climate, grant funding for small businesses can go a long way. This can commonly be the difference between success and failure for many start-up or struggling businesses. Fortunately at Nordens, many of our clients lie within the construction sector. This means we’re used to the trails and challenges which the industry faces, from IR35 to growth strategies.
We’ve come up with a list of resources for the construction sector in relation to what grants are available. Some of these are national, whilst some are locally specific, however there should be something for all construction businesses to best support you…
What National Grants Are Available For My Construction Business?
CITB (Construction Industry Training Board) Grants Scheme
CITB provides grants for construction industry employers who provide training for their workforce. The Grants Scheme helps the industry maintain high standards. This means it makes sure people are being trained in the right skills for the industry to thrive. All employers registered with CITB can apply for a grant, available to employers of all sizes, whether or not you pay a levy to CITB.
From apprenticeships to long qualifications, short courses to plant test achievements, so much training is covered with grants ranging from £600 to £3500.
I-Construct
I-Construct offers small businesses in the construction supply-chain free support to improve their bottom line. With membership free, grant funding ranges from £1,000 to £20,000 to part-fund the development and launch of a new product/service. Members will also have access to business development support and networking, as well as the ability to access significant projects in South-East England.
Offering a community of connections, mentorship and financial support, I-Construct aim to progress the construction industry through empowering small businesses together.
B&CE Charitable Trust
The B&CE are a non for profit organisation with a solid foundation in the construction industry. They support businesses in training, education and development. Grants are available for projects that either promote careers in the construction industry or lead to accredited qualifications. They also provide grants to help individuals get back into construction or to retrain in another skill if there’s an occupational health requirement.
Help To Grow: Digital
The Help to Grow: Digital is a learning platform which delivers free, impartial information and advice that helps businesses adopt the right technology and software. By providing guidance on how to choose and use digital software to grow your business, this government scheme features discounts worth up to £5,000 that aids you in finding the right productivity software for your business.
Discounts will cover up to 50% of the software costs, with a strong focus on customer relationship management (CRM) software as well as accountancy software. Embracing software and digital ways of working can help boost business performance. Software integration has helped many SMEs to expand their reach and target more customers, as well as deliver efficiency in time-consuming tasks.
One to one business advice is also available on how to streamline your business using digital techniques and embracing newfound technology.
What Localised Grants Are Available For My Construction Business?
Tees Valley Apprenticeship Support Grant
Aimed at SMEs around the Tees Valley region of the UK, the grant supports SMEs who create Apprenticeships in sectors facing high demand and growth from employers as identified in the Tees Valley Strategic Economic Plan. For apprentices between 16 and 18 years of age grants of £3000 are available, and for apprentices aged 19 and over grants of £2000 are available.
The priority sectors being supported by the grant are:
- Advanced Manufacturing
- Process, Chemicals and Energy
- Logistics
- Health and Biologics
- Digital and Creative
- Business and Professional Services
- Construction
- Health Care
- Culture and Leisure
- Education
The Smart Concept Fund Wolverhampton
A Proof Of Concept grant, the Smart Concept Fund provides up to £16,500 at an intervention rate of up to 55% to fund an approved development project. This grant is expected to close in early 2023. In order to be eligible for the funding, you must be based in the Black Country, The Marches or Stoke on Trent and Staffordshire and is targeted to businesses in the following sectors:
- Transport technologies (including aerospace and automotive)
- Building technologies/construction
- Advanced manufacturing including advanced engineering
- Environmental technologies
- Applied materials
- Agritech/agriculture, food and drink
- Medical technology
- Energy generation
- Defence and securities
Growth Deal Funding
The Growth Deal, based for businesses in the Black Country, aims to drive business growth, provide people new skills, test new innovations, invest in transport infrastructure and regenerate key sites for employment.
The funding intends to maximise the economic impact of growth opportunities from the automotive, aerospace and construction sectors. Funding is awarded on a case-by-case basis.
Invest To Grow Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire based businesses could claim between £15,000 and £250,000 for developments which enable the delivery of new jobs and commercial space. The Invest To Grow is a rolling fund that can be applied to at any time. It works by Business Lincolnshire providing up to 30% of project costs, whilst businesses must find at least 70% of costs.
Invest To Grow Derbyshire
The Invest To Grow Derbyshire is funded through The University of Derby by supplying loans between £15,000 and £250,000. This helps support private businesses across the East Midlands to innovate, grow and create jobs. The following objectives will be prioritised:
- It will create new jobs or safeguard existing positions in your company
- It will increase the scope or scale of your company activity
- It will improve the company’s performance
- It has not commenced and will not be achievable in the timescales proposed without Invest to Grow support.
Businesses must be able to create jobs that can be sustained for at least three years – businesses that create higher-skilled jobs are preferred.
Growing Hull & East Yorkshire Business Investment Grants
Growing Hull and East Yorkshire is a £1.5m business investment scheme aiming to provide capital grants to SME businesses in Hull and East Yorkshire to support and incentivise business growth, investment and job creation.
The programme builds on the success and momentum of the successful Growing the Humber business grant programme. The scheme should be considered alongside other finance options such as bank loans or asset finance.
Grants of between £5,000 and £250,000 are available to SME businesses that are able to demonstrate viability and will contribute to the wider growth of Hull and East Yorkshire. Grants below the minimum threshold may be considered as an exceptional case.
ECITB Engineering Training Grants
Engineering training grants are funded by the industrial training levy and used to meet the needs of employers and the wider industry.
Grants are paid TO employers to subsidise training costs for their workforce. The ECITB also pays grants to training providers who provide the training, tests and qualifications that industry requires.
The ECITB works with employers to identify training needs and to drive up skill levels across the industry. Eligible employers can access a wide range of engineering training grants to support the training they require.
Grant support is available for a range of training activities. The ECITB prioritises funding for training that improves the productivity and safety of the engineering construction workforce and also training that develops skills that are transferrable across industry.
These areas of training include:
- New entrant training – apprenticeships, graduate development and workers transferring across industry sectors.
- Craft/technician skills (e.g. Mechanical Joint Integrity)
- Safety training (excluding the CCNSG safety passport)
- Leadership, management and supervisory development.
- Competence assurance (e.g. vocational qualifications and technical tests)
- Contractual requirement (e.g. works access and plant operations)
- Project management, project controls and commercial awareness
- Design training (e.g. CAD and BIM)
You can also find a Grants Finder via the government Grants Hub website which will help find what exact grants you are entitled to for your construction business.
We hope this has outlined to you what grants are available for construction businesses within the UK. If you’d like to know any further information on anything mentioned, or anything accounting related for that matter, please do not hesitate to get in contact with us at Nordens, where one of our trusted advisors would be happy talking you through your query.
