Grants on offer from £4m Business Growth Programme

Keighley and Shipley businesses are invited to apply for grants of up to £315,000 to help them grow or develop.

The programme is designed to help new start-ups and small, medium-sized and large businesses based in, or looking to move to the Keighley and Shipley Towns Fund areas.

Funding can be used to either expand, increase productivity, create a new business, safeguard existing jobs and/or create new jobs.

The Towns Fund is a Government-funded support programme to boost the economies of towns across the UK. The programme is part of the Government’s Levelling Up plan.

Decisions on grants are made by Towns Fund Boards for each town, which are made up of private sector representatives with support from Bradford Council.

The scheme has secured £33m for projects in Keighley and £25m for Shipley. The Business Growth Programme Capital Grant is a £4m fund to directly support businesses within these areas with £2m each allocated to the Keighley and Shipley Towns Fund areas.

The grant scheme was launched in the last quarter of 2022 and is now open for applications. Businesses can apply for grants of £1,500 to £315,000.

The programme can also help businesses to invest in greener measures, such as solar panels, double glazing and more energy efficient roofing, if such investments aid increased productivity, efficiency, growth and job creation or protection.

Projects already supported by the scheme include Yorkshire Precision Engineering Ltd, Keighley, which had its application approved to fund a new type of lathe to increase production capabilities and allow development of new products for the healthcare sector.

Pave Haworth Ltd, a deli and bistro in Haworth, secured funds to extend into empty premises next door.

The money will part-fund work to expand seating capacity, and extend the kitchen and basement. It will also create three new full-time jobs and a number of part-time and seasonal posts.

Chef Akila Ltd, an Indian ready meal manufacturer, received funding to fit out its new premises in Keighley. The business also bought new equipment and employed more kitchen staff.

Finally, Byworth Boilers Ltd, a manufacturer of industrial boilers, had a grant application approved to help replace old bending rolls with a larger capacity new set of CNC Davi rolls which will allow the company to improve productivity and increase capacity. The investment will create five more jobs.

Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council’s portfolio holder for regeneration, planning and transport, said: “This funding is already reaping huge benefits for the businesses who have received it so far and has the potential to boost the economies of Keighley and Shipley. I hope other businesses will take advantage of it.”

Ian Hayfield, chair of Keighley Towns Fund, said: “We are pleased to have been able to make a difference to these local businesses.

“These projects will help achieve  real social and economic change for all parts of Keighley’s diverse community.”