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British Business Bank’s Start Up Loans Programme Reveals Its 2024 Ambassadors

Press release 17 September 2024

  • Start Up Loans recognises 14 smaller businesses from across the UK as inspiring examples of UK start ups supported by the programme
  • Start Up Loans has delivered more than £1.1bn of finance to over 115,000 businesses since 2012

A post-mastectomy lingerie brand in the Midlands, an independent dog store in Leeds, a Super Car and motorsports events company in the North East, and a sustainable sportswear brand in Northern Ireland are among 14 businesses announced today as the 2024 Ambassadors for the Start Up Loans programme.

The annual Start Up Loans Ambassadors programme, now in its ninth year, celebrates inspiring UK business owners who have launched an enterprise using funding from the government-backed scheme. The Ambassadors have been selected as they demonstrate the resilience, creativity, and determination required to make a smaller business successful, and to provide inspiration for entrepreneurs across the UK.

This year, in addition to 12 Ambassadors drawn from each of the UK’s Nations and regions, two more Ambassadors have been selected. These business owners represent two important groups supported by the programme, who may face challenges in accessing funding elsewhere - one from the ex-forces community and the other from the 18-24 age group.

Previous Start Up Loans Ambassadors have gone on to secure considerable growth, such as Dash Water, NICE Drinks and UK Connect. One of the most successful scale-up businesses supported by a Start Up Loan is Castore, which at the end of 2023 had a valuation of approximately £950m.

The 2024 Ambassadors will be introduced at a dedicated event in central London that marks the start of a year-long programme which will see the new Ambassadors take part in a series of local and national activities, helping inspire and encourage aspiring start-up founders to take the leap into business ownership.

I am delighted to welcome the new cohort of Start Up Loans Ambassadors, and I’m particularly excited that we’ve been able to add two additional business owners as Ambassadors this year - one from the ex-forces community and one representing Gen Z.

All 14 of our Ambassadors have inspiring stories and represent the breadth and diversity of the UK’s smaller business community. These entrepreneurs are vital for our economy, and their success fuels our nation's growth and prosperity.

- Richard Bearman Managing Director of Small Business Lending, British Business Bank

Since its inception in 2012, the Start Up Loan programme has delivered more than 115,000 loans to individual business owners across the UK, amounting to more than £1.1bn of funding. Of those loans, 40% of loan recipients have been women and 20% from Black, Asian, and Other Minority Ethnic backgrounds (not including White Minorities).

Through a network of Business Support Partner organisations, the Start Up Loans programme provides access to pre-and-post loan support to help applicants develop a business plan; fixed-interest 6% personal loans of up to £25,000 to help recipients to start or grow their business; and mentoring support to help loan recipients with everything from cash flow to marketing.

These new ambassadors are prime examples of the innovation and ingenuity of the UK’s small firms. Access to finance is crucial for SMEs to succeed, and the startup loan scheme is a lightning rod to that success. We know that when small businesses are given the tools to thrive, it leads to growth, more jobs and helps to boost the whole economy. - Gareth Thomas Small Business Minister

Nations and regions breakdown of loans since 2012

UK Region

Loans Made

Amount Lent (£)

Average Loan Amount (£)

East Midlands

6,607

64,158,395

9711

East of England

8,594

88,247,840

10269

London

23,295

224,972,451

9658

North East

6,078

57,815,094

9512

North West

14,456

139,493,854

9651

Northern Ireland

1,979

17,524,809

8855

Scotland

7,507

71,528,686

9528

South East

12,090

129,021,858

10672

South West

10,100

98,438,741

9746

Wales

4,919

50,173,329

10,200

West Midlands

9,608

93,322,386

9713

Yorkshire and The Humber

10,287

101,901,172

9906

Region not obtained

1,325

16,483,914

12441

Grand Total

116,845

1,153,082,529

9868

Source: Start Up Loans, 31 August 2024

Further Information

If you are a journalist and have a media enquiry, please contact [email protected].

Notes to editors

About Start Up Loans

The Start Up Loans programme is operated by The Start-Up Loans Company, a company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales, registration number 08117656, registered office at Steel City House, West Street, Sheffield, S1 2GQ.

The Start-Up Loans Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of British Business Bank plc.

British Business Bank plc is a development bank wholly government-owned by DBT and is not authorised or regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) or the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The British Business Bank and its subsidiary entities are not banking institutions and do not operate as such.

Free guides on a range of subjects related to starting a business and recent media press releases are available on the Start Up Loans website.

The British Business Bank makes finance markets for smaller businesses work better, helping the sector to prosper, to grow and to build economic activity.

Key Statistics

  • Since its inception in 2012, the Start Up Loans scheme has delivered over 115,000 loans, providing more than £1.13bn of funding.
  • In the financial year 2023/24, the scheme provided 9,759 loans with a total value of approximately £125m.
  • The economic benefits of the Start Up Loans programme are almost six (5.7) times its economic costs.
  • Since 2012, 31% of loans went to people formerly unemployed or economically inactive. 40% of loan recipients were women and 20% were from ethnic minority groups (not including white minorities).

Aside from the return-on-investment numbers these statistics are gross estimates and based on Start Up Loans CRM along with externally commissioned research undertaken by SQW Ltd, with support from BMG Research.

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