Second phase of Here2Help Business launches

The second phase of the Here2Help Business programme has been launched by the County Council.

Here2Help Business 2.0 is designed to assist Worcestershire Businesses to recover, adapt, develop and build future resilience and consists of three offers:

-Sustain and Grow Grants
-Develop Graduate Grant
-Tourism Sector Support

Councillor Marc Bayliss, Cabinet Member for Economy and Skills, said: "Our Here2Help Business programme has proven to be really popular with local businesses and a real lifeline to many of them after a particularly difficult period. This flexible approach allows the programme to respond quickly to the changing needs of our local economy as we journey through the impact of the pandemic. The programme of activity aims to help businesses come back stronger realising their full potential for 2021 and building a sustainable model for 2022 onwards." 

Sustain & Grow Grants are now available for Small Medium Enterprises (SME's) to apply for projects to help address the challenges raised by the Coronavirus pandemic and build a stronger business for the future.

The Develop Graduate Grant will aim to improve business productivity and increase local employment opportunities for recent graduates.

The grant will cover a six-month period at 40% of the Graduate salary costs up to a maximum of £5,000 with the remaining 60% to be provided by the SME.

The Tourism Sector Support team will continue to provide specialist 1:1 consultancy to help the county's businesses develop their tourism offer.

There are also interactive seminar workshops to help you maximise revenue throughout the summer and build a pipeline for 2022.