Ashington Partnership Announced to Support Northumberland’s Growing Businesses Community

Northumberland based business support programme, The Northumberland Small Business Service, has announced a new partnership with Northumberland Business Service Limited (NBSL) to bring local businesses support for growth opportunities.

The new partnership offers micro-small sized businesses up to 12 hours of support with a technical specialist, covering a range of topics from Resilience Planning, New Product Development Planning to Digital Marketing. With over 14 subjects, businesses of all sectors and experience are encouraged to take advantage of the support.

As part of the support from Northumberland Small Business Service, businesses may also be eligible for grant support to help their business grow.  

With a record high of nearly 13,000 companies now registered in the county, the support is a welcomed addition to the business support landscape. The 1-2-1 support will see businesses safeguard jobs as well as create 100 jobs across Northumberland.

The Northumberland Small Business Service (NSBS), is delivered by Advance Northumberland delivering on behalf of Northumberland County Council. The project is partly funded by the North of Tyne Combined Authority Investment Fund and by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and the Rural England Prosperity Fund with the North of Tyne Combined Authority as the lead authority.

John King, Head of Operations at NBSL said "We are delighted to be working with the NSBS Team to bring this important support offer to the Northumberland business community. We would encourage local businesses to explore how this technical specialist programme can support them to achieve their growth plans."

NBSL has supported over 14,000 businesses across Northumberland and will be working closely with NSBS as part of their Growth and Resilience element of the service, which is aimed at micro-small sized Northumberland based businesses who have been trading for over 12 months.

Both Ashington based, NSBS and NBSL are excited to work together to support businesses as part of the NSBS Growth and Resilience strand of support, which is being delivered until March 2026.

As well as the Growth and Resilience support, the service also offers support for farm enterprises looking to diversify and individuals looking to start a business across Northumberland but predominantly in the rural areas.

The experienced team and its range of experts will work directly with individuals and businesses to help them start, grow, diversify, and sustain their businesses. There is also access to a £2million rural capital Grant Investment Fund which will support eligible businesses in rural areas with clear growth plans to access direct capital investment to expand productive capacity or diversify into new markets or products.

Interim Programme Manager, Gillian Fricker said “I am excited to announce the partnership and continue to support businesses across the County. It is a very exciting time for businesses in Northumberland and we are looking forward to seeing how the 12 hours of tailored 1-2-1 support can help businesses flourish and grow”.

The North of Tyne Combined Authority is a partnership of three local authorities: Newcastle City Council, North Tyneside Council, and Northumberland County Council and the North of Tyne Elected Mayor.

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund is a central pillar of the UK government’s Levelling Up agenda and provides £2.6 billion of funding for local investment by March 2025.

The Fund aims to improve pride in place and increase life chances across the UK investing in communities and place, supporting local business, and people and skills. For more information, visit https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-shared-prosperity-fund-prospectus/uk-shared-prosperity-fund-prospectus

If you have any questions about the event or the new Northumberland Small Business Service, please visit www.northumberlandsmallbusiness.co.uk or contact the team at business@advancenorthumberland.co.uk