A new multimillion pound programme, Scaleup North East, aims to create more than 6,000 new jobs and boost the number of scaleup businesses in the region by 50% by 2024.
Expressions of interest are now open for Scaleup North East, which is being delivered by RTC North as an integral part of the North East Growth Hub. The programme will support businesses with the ambition and drive to achieve a real step change in business growth.
Businesses involved in the programme will be matched with an experienced ‘Scaleup Partner’ to work with them throughout their journey to support and inspire them to achieve their growth goals.
Colin Bell, Business Growth director at the North East LEP, said: “Scaleup North East is an incredibly exciting programme that is aimed at businesses that want to scale, become more profitable and employ more people.”
“This is something totally new. It’s a real step-change for the region that will help us meet our goal of creating more and better jobs and opportunities, as set out in our Strategic Economic Plan.
“Scaleup North East will create and sustain more scaleup businesses and has the potential to make a truly transformational impact on the North East economy.”
Andrew Buckley, Chief Executive at RTC North, said “RTC has been supporting North East businesses for 30 years and is incredibly proud to be delivering the Scaleup North East programme. We are looking forward not only to working with the region’s existing scale up businesses, helping them to overcome any barriers to continued growth, but also to identifying and nurturing the next generation of scale up businesses.”
To join Scaleup North East, businesses must:
· Be based in the North East LEP area (Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, County Durham)
· Be a registered company and have been trading for more than three years
· Have a minimum of five and less than 250 employees (FTEs)
· Have an annual turnover of more than £500K and less than €50million
· Operate in an eligible ERDF sector (not banking, insurance or retail sectors)
But, most importantly, participating businesses must have the ambition to grow.
Businesses that think they could benefit are now being asked to come forward to register their interest and sign up to the launch event on January 26 at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/
Scaleup North East is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020.
The project received a £700,000 grant from the Local Growth Deal through the North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).
For more information, visit www.scaleupnortheast.co.uk or call RTC North on 0191 516 4400.