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South West businesses benefit from £11m of loans in the past year including Lucy Rose James Photography

Press release 22 July 2024

Start Up Loans, part of the British Business Bank, today announced that it has delivered more than £11 million of loans to businesses in the South West in the past financial year (2023-2024).

The scheme has a 12-year legacy of delivering funding to businesses who may otherwise find it difficult to secure loans from traditional lenders. The programme also offers mentoring to recipients in their first year. Since its inception in 2012, the programme has supported over 9,000 businesses through £90 million in loans in the South West.

In the past financial year alone (2023-2024), over £11 million has been lent to 874 businesses via the Bank’s appointed Business Support Partners, which is primarily SWIG Finance in the South West. Spread across the region, the diverse range of businesses includes an animal therapist, mobile cocktail bar, baker, green builder, photographer, sewing café and ceramics studio

We're delighted that the Start Up Loans programme continues to have such a hugely positive impact on entrepreneurs across the South West, helping hundreds of small businesses in the past year. Hitting £11 million is a huge milestone and highlights the success of our efforts to boost access to finance across the region - Richard Bearman Manging Director, Small Business Lending, British Business Bank

Devon business benefitting from financing

One of the businesses to benefit is Lucy Rose James Photography, a photography business based in Honiton, Devon. Set up last year by Lucy Jenkins, and named in honour of her late father, she specialises in photographing weddings and engagements.

She became interested in taking pictures when her dad Paul James bought her a camera for her 23rd birthday. Ever since then, Lucy has been documenting the world around her, taking photographs of adventures and family memories, just like her father once did.

My dad was always taking photographs, documenting moments, memories and adventures we would inevitable always be getting lost on,” said Lucy. “After buying me my first camera, I too become hooked on the world that holding a camera in your hands opens up.

After my dad passed away, this fuelled my drive to pursue a life of joy, and photography. It seemed fitting therefore that he should be part of the business and combining his name with mine felt like the perfect way to honour the inspiration that he was to me.

- Lucy Jenkins Owner, Lucy Rose James Photography

She used a £1,400 Start Up Loan from British Business Bank, through its Business Support Partner, The Prince’s Trust, to invest in essential equipment, including a new lens for her camera and to get her website up and running. Lucy also worked with a mentor from The Prince’s Trust who supported her through the Start Up Loan application process.

It really is worth the risk to take that leap. Knowing that there are people who want to see you succeed truly does make all the difference - Lucy Jenkins Owner, Lucy Rose James Photography

The Start Up Loans programme helps people start or grow their business and is part of the government-owned British Business Bank’s remit to make finance markets work better for smaller businesses. They can borrow up to £25,000 at a fixed interest rate of 6% per annum and repay the loan over one to five years. The programme also provides 12 months of free business mentoring.

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 provides personal loans for business purposes of up to £25,000 at a 6% fixed interest rate per annum and offers free dedicated mentoring and support to each business.

The primary aim of the Start Up Loans programme is to ensure that viable start-ups and early-stage businesses have access to the finance and support they need in order to thrive. A network of Business Support Partner organisations supports applicants in all regions and industries throughout the UK. The Start Up Loans programme is not designed to generate a commercial profit. Capital payments together with the interest are recycled to help meet borrowers’ increasing demands for finance.

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 funding for the Start Up Loans programme is provided by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT). A development bank wholly government-owned by DBT, the British Business Bank plc 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.

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 105,000 loans, providing more than £1bn of funding.
  • In the financial year 2022/23, the scheme provided 9,549 loans with a total value of approximately £120m.
  • The economic benefits of the Start Up Loans programme are almost six (5.7) times its economic costs.
  • At Spending Review 2021, the Chancellor announced resources to provide 33,000 Start Up Loans over next three years.

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.

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).

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