Business Support

Companies in six regions will receive support through the Create Growth Programme to help get themselves investment ready.

A key aim of the Create Growth Programme is to support creative businesses to explore and secure commercial investment opportunities. To this end each of the selected regions will have a Programme of activity that will enable businesses to be ready for investment and facilitate access to  additional funding from Innovate UK and commercial investors in 2023 and beyond.  

Creative UK will be working with partners in three of the regions (North East, Cornwall and South East), to launch Programmes in January 2023 that are tailored to each specific region and the creative sub sectors based there.

Businesses have up until 8th February to apply for £10-£30k each for innovation projects.

Be the Business is an independent, not-for-profit movement. We’re here to help every firm in the country improve their own performance, and the performance of those they work with.

Being an employer means a business must have employers’ liability insurance, with a minimum cover of £5m. Having Employers Liability Insurance will cover the business against claims of compensation in the event of injury or illness of employees.

Under the Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969, it is a requirement that the insurance is provided by an authorised insurer. This list can be found on fca.org.uk/register

Better Business for All (BBfA) is a collaboration between business and regulators to enable simpler and more consistent compliance with relevant regulation, ultimately leading to a safer and more profitable society.

The Department for International Trade (DIT) provides expert international trade advice and practical support to UK-based companies who want to grow their business overseas.

The DIT provides tailored support packages for companies who are:

• First time exporters (FTEs)
• Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
• Medium-sized businesses (MSBs)

It also provides other services, including digital and online support that can help all types of business.

Generosity Bank is an online self-service platform that enables small businesses to connect with local professionals in their area who are willing to use their professional work-place skills to help out on a short term and one-off voluntary basis.

All you have to do is register on the site, then create a Placement post with the details of the help you require and you’ll receive an email when a volunteer is interested.

The Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN) helps businesses get the best out of creativity, ideas and the latest discoveries, to strengthen the UK economy and improve people’s lives.

KTN is a network partner of Innovate UK.

Intellectual Property Office

What intellectual property is:

Having the right type of intellectual property protection helps you to stop people stealing or copying:

Innovate UK

Innovate UK is the UK’s innovation agency. It works with people, companies and partner organisations to find and drive the science and technology innovations that will grow the UK economy.

Innovate UK works to:

• Determine which science and technology developments will drive future economic growth
• Meet UK innovators with great ideas in the fields we’re focused on
• Fund the strongest opportunities
• Connect innovators with the right partners they need to succeed
• Help our innovators launch, build and grow successful businesses

SmallBusiness.co.uk provides advice and useful guides to UK sole traders and small businesses.

Visit Britain – Business Advice Hub

Helping your tourism business to grow – with practical tips, legal obligations and local support

Once your business reaches a VAT taxable turnover, you need to register for VAT. The threshold is the total of everything you sell that isn’t exempt from VAT reaching more than £82,000 in a rolling 12-month period.

If you’re unsure if you have reached the threshold in a 12-month period, total up the following items to check:

• Goods hired or loaned to customers
• Business goods used for personal reasons
• Goods that you have bartered, part-exchanged or given as gifts
• Services received from other countries that you had to reverse charge
• If you completed building works for the business yourself that exceeded £100,000

Following from the date of registration, you will need to ensure that your business charges the correct amount for VAT as well as submit VAT returns within the correct times and make payments accordingly.

Although you are not able to charge businesses VAT on your invoices until your VAT number is allocated, you will need to advise HMRC of VAT spend during this period.