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Business Support Organisations Supporting Yorkshire & Humber Chemical Companies
Business Links are an excellent first point of contact on any query. Although Business Links were originally conceived to support SMEs they increasingly engage with larger businesses. Even if Business Links cannot help themselves they can frequently suggest others who may be able to assist and also provide information on grants. If nothing else looks promising, then try the appropriate Business Link. A searchable database of assistance ranging from free and subsidised services to grants. The website also contains other worthwhile support links for businesses. It is part of the Business Link organisation. Business Link West Yorkshire is a useful first point of contact for businesses in the West Yorkshire region. Business Link West Yorkshire is a useful first point of contact for businesses in the South Yorkshire region. Business Link York and North Yorkshire is a useful first point of contact for businesses in the North Yorkshire region. Business Link Humber is a useful first point of contact for businesses in the Humber region. Services are provided by the DTI, Foreign Office and Business Links all aimed at helping companies to develop international business. Alistair Gardner is the export trade specialist dedicated to chemicals covering the whole of the Yorkshire and Humber region. Companies in all parts of the region can contact him through Business Link Humber. UK Trade and Investment is part of the export promotion activities of the UK government. Although Business Links may be a better source of primary contact, these pages do contain some useful links and background information. The International Technology Promoters Network is a DTI service to encourage partnering and licensing with overseas firms. It is delivered by specialist International Technology Promoters who are divided into territories and industry sectors. The chemical industry falls into the Energy and Environment sector. Innovation Relay Centres are an EU sponsored initiative to promote the transfer of technology to and from European companies and research departments. There is a network of offices throughout the EU that can help companies looking for technology or with technology they wish to exploit. Business Links offer many services to assis in the development of people, skills and related human resources. In addition there is specialist training support in West Yorkshire and Humberside for the chemical industry and a wide variety of courses from Leandirect. The Skills Brokerage service in Humber consists of vouchers covering up to 50% of the costs of training staff in the chemical industry. For more information and applications contact Humber Chemical Focus. The Chemical Industry Regional Centre of Excellence (CIRCE) hold the skills brokerage contract for West Yorkshire. Contact them for further information. Learndirect are a single point of access to 700,000 training courses at 2,000 locations throughout the UK and also a source of learning advice. Services are aimed at both individuals and also employers. Mentorbank is a free service to enable Yorkshire & Humber companies to find and work with enior business advisors and mentors. Grants are available to cover up to 65% of the costs. There are several agencies who help fledgling entrepreneurs to become established. Business Links are a major supplier of these services and other organisations are listed here. Connect Yorkshire is an initiative to support entrepreneurs establish and grow their high growth technology businesses by polishing their business plan, accessing advice and meeting investors. Sheffield University Enterprises Limited is the University of Sheffield’s wholly owned technology transfer company. Its mission is to support the teaching and research objectives of the University through successful commercial exploitation of the IP created by its staff by identifying opportunities with commercial potential and exploiting them. An interactive strategic planning tool to write and produce a business strategy in a final printed form. It is applicable to both brand new businesses as well as new ventures by existing ones. Specialist services exist to support businesses with high growth potential. The purpose of the High Growth Business Network is to help businesses in the Yorkshire & Humber region grow and be more successful through greater innovation and the application of technology to solve their business challenges. West Yorkshire Ventures offer a specialist programme to support those start-up businesses with serious high growth potential, and people with ambitious business plans. The programme offers local entrepreneurs a wide range of specialist resources including one-to-one advice, fund raising assistance, external consultancy and a range of specialist seminars. It is a specialist unit in Business Link West Yorkshire. There is a wide variety of grants available. These links contain a searchable database, links to DTI schemes and tax credits for innovation. The Funding section of the Yorkshire Forward website has a searchable database on funding and also manages SFI (Selective Finance for Investment) for the region. All grant enquiries are best directed to the appropriate Business Link in the first instance. The DTI Technology Programme includes various schemes to provide assistance to companies carrying out R&D whether alone or collaboratively. Although not a formal grant, companies can claim up to 150% of qualifying expenditure on R&D activities when calculating their profit for tax purposes. Companies which are SMEs can, in certain circumstances, claim this as cash from the Inland Revenue.

Sources of Support for Yorkshire & Humber Chemical Companies

There are several business support organisations providing general support or acting as a first point of contact for queries not covered elsewhere. The most notable of these are the Business Links. If all else fails or you are not sure who to turn to, try your local Business Link.

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