About us

Our mission is to make owning a business a viable career for people who struggle to raise finance. 

We provide affordable loans and mentoring to help these people start up and succeed.

As part of the British Business Bank, our aim is to drive sustainable growth and prosperity across the UK, and to enable the transition to a net zero economy, by supporting access to finance for smaller businesses.

We work with a national network of business support partners who are based across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. 

As well as helping loan applicants prepare their business plans and cash flow forecasts, our business support partners are responsible for assessing final applications and providing ongoing mentoring support to those people whose applications are successful.

We also work with a finance provider, GC Business Finance (GCBF). 

Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), they are responsible for managing loan agreements and issuing funds to successful applicants. 

They also act as the main contact for any matters relating to loan administration and repayments.

Business support partners do not get involved at this level once a loan has been granted.

We monitor all our business support partners and our finance provider closely, to make sure we’re consistent in how we support applicants and making responsible lending decisions across the entire network.