RGF Rounds 5 and 6

The Government has announced two further rounds of the Regional Growth Fund, Rounds 5 and 6. The format and conditions remain, we understand, broadly as before.

Thus: -

a)      Grants will be issued to private projects that help rebalance the economy by driving it from the public to the private sector.

b)      Creates or safeguards jobs in a sustainable fashion.

c)      Supports research and development, capital expenditure and/or training projects singularly or combined.

R&D and training projects will be supported throughout England regardless of company size; capital expenditure projects for large companies can only be supported in Assisted Areas but for SMEs throughout England.

Notwithstanding the above in practice most grants have gone to those areas heavily dependant on the Public sector. Thus the NW. NE, Midlands have gained the largest grant share but even London and the SE have benefited too.

The minimum grant that may be applied for is £1m. Historically for each £1 of grant there has been approximately £5 of private money invested although this varies from as low as £1.50 to £11.50. Given the £1m minimum grant this means the average project is around a minimum of £6m although many are much higher.

Round 5 opens officially on 11^th October and will close on 9^th December 2013. Round 6 is due to open in the summer of 2014. The grant is awarded on a strictly competitive basis with approximately 1 in 5 bids succeeding.

Grantaid has obtained over £10m for clients from RGF Rounds 2, 3 and 4 and we are thus well versed in the intricacies of this decidedly complex grant and will be happy to assist companies with applications.

Your project too small for RGF?

The Regional Growth Fund minimum grant has always been £1m and thus is often too large for many SMEs to utilise. However, in rounds 1, 2, 3 and 4 intermediary organisations were allowed to put in bids to obtain money for distribution in smaller amounts to projects that met their criteria. Over £800m was made available for distribution and much of this, probably over £500m, is still available.

Grants and/or loans are made by intermediary organisations who set their own criteria which are often based on specific geographical areas, specific industrial sectors and specific types of project. Thus the programmes vary hugely in their applicability but the amounts that can be claimed can be as low as £5,000 making them more suitable for many SMEs.

Full details on the various programmes  and guidance on RGF for SMEs can be found at https://www.gov.uk/regional-growth-fund-a-guide-for-small-and-medium-enterprises-smes#finding-an-rgf-programme-in-your-area