Business support organisations - Northern Ireland
- Providing information and advice, directly and through a range of information services
- Providing support to people wanting to set up their own business and helping new and existing businesses grow and move into new markets
- Providing tailored support to businesses that can make the greatest contribution to increasing productivity, innovation and export growth in Northern Ireland
Regardless of the size of your business or the sector in which you operate, the Business Support Team can provide you with a free advisory service.
They can help your business succeed through a combination of financial support, tailored guidance and information.
- Support for business Start a business
- Develop products and services
- Develop strategy
- Find funding
- Find new markets
- Improve skills
- Operate more efficiently
- Video tutorials
Free Information website – the online gateway for business support, information and advice
Enterprise Northern Ireland represents the region's largest network of business parks and advice centres. There are 28 Local Enterprise Agencies, located in every city and major town in Northern Ireland. This means that business support is available close to you, wherever you work or live.
Start-up
If you are at start-up stage - from having a business idea right through to £50k turnover and/or trading for less than 2 years – there is a range of support and advice services to get you started or helped into the growth and acceleration stage.
Business growth
There will be a Local Enterprise Agency local to you, where you can access:
- Useful workshops
- The Co-Innovate programme
- Access to funds
- Mentors, advisors and local / domain expertise
- Flexible contract workspace - offices, warehouses, industrial units - whatever space you require to help you growFunding: Enterprise Northern Ireland manages:
- Business Finance
- Start-Up Loans delivered in Northern Ireland since November 2013; part of a suite of ideas designed to boost the level of entrepreneurial spirit within the UK and stimulate the growth
- The NI Small Business Loan Fund; part of Invest NI’s Access to Finance strategy. The Fund is managed and delivered by the partnership of Ulster Community Investments Plc and Enterprise Northern Ireland.
Workspace
There are flexible contracts to enable you to scale up and down as you wish, and all spaces are set up with small to medium sized businesses in mind
Its overall aim is to help drive increases in recycling and resource efficiency in Northern Ireland. To do this, WRAP Northern Ireland delivers a range of programmes, initiatives and other interventions to help people and organisations reduce waste and recycle more.
WRAP works with governments, businesses and communities to deliver practical solutions to improve resource efficiency.
They help the move to a sustainable, resource-efficient economy by:
- re-inventing how we design, produce and sell products,
- re-thinking how we use and consume products, and
- re-defining what is possible through re-use and recycling Areas of work include:
- Support for the construction sector
- Waste prevention and minimisation
- Love food hate waste
- Rethink waste
- Support for the recycling industry.
Home energy saving measures including grants for householders. Funding for energy efficiency work such as insulation and energy efficient boilers in homes.
Transport
The Fleet Management Toolkit for businesses provides information and resources to help you lower your costs, while reducing the carbon emissions from your organisation’s vehicles and employee travel.
Fleet support
- EST will carry out a full analysis of your fleet’s data and produce our recommendations in an in-depth report.
- Your consultant will present recommendations, fully discuss these and allow you to ask any questions you may have.
- identify where ULEVs would be operationally feasible in your fleet
- EST will check if you qualify for additional support to help implement any recommendations.
There is a wide range of grant and subsidy schemes to support local farming, fisheries, rural businesses and communities.
Financial Support
DAERA further education awards are administered by the Education Authority on behalf of DAERA.
Students enrolled on a full-time further education course at CAFRE should therefore apply to the EA for financial support.
Industry Training
CAFRE provides a range of learning programmes designed to meet the needs of those who work in the land-based and food industries. These courses are suitable for farmers, farm family members, people over 16 years old, and those running or working in agri-food and rural businesses.
Industry training is available for the following sectors:
- Agri-business
- Agri-environment
- Agriculture Industry training
- Equine
- Food
- Horticulture
- Information Technology
- Pesticides
- Veterinary Nursing
Funding platform
The Federation of Small Businesses Funding Platform offers members direct access to hundreds of business funding options with a single application. They help you find the right funding for your business, save you precious time, and lower the overall cost of finance.
A range of services aimed at businesses, government and the public sector:
- Tools and guidance on energy efficiency, employee awareness and carbon footprinting.
- Design and manage long term multi-stakeholder projects to deliver results aimed at moving towards a low carbon economy
- Independent assurance and certification services that recognise achievements in sustainability.
Manages
- the Green Business Fund
- the BEIS Industrial Energy Efficiency Accelerator fund
- Energy Efficiency Financing
For more information visit:
Northern Ireland
Carbon Trust Loan Scheme
Unit 3, The Innovation Centre
Northern Ireland Science Park
Queen's Road
BT3 9DT
Northern Ireland
The environmental compliance scheme Ecosurety has launched a £1million innovation and research fund for projects that seek to reduce the impact of packaging, batteries or WEEE (electronic waste) on the environment. The fund will be spread across three years with individual grant applications of up to £150,000 being accepted.
Applications to the Ecosurety Exploration Fund can be made via the Ecosurety website from Thursday 28th November 2019.