£11m startup loans delivered in West Midlands
Start Up Loans, part of the British Business Bank, has announced that it has delivered more than £140m of loans to UK entrepreneurs aged 50+ since its inception in 2012.
The programme has supported 13,422 loans, at an average of £10,427.
Of these loans, more than £11m have gone to business owners aged 50 or over in the West Midlands. Almost 1,000 (993) loans have been issued to businesses, with an average loan amount of £11,311.
Start Up Loans has delivered more than £13m worth of loans nationally to the over 50s in the financial year running 1 April 2023 – 31 March 2024. This represents a significant contribution to national efforts to encourage people aged 50+ back into work through a variety of initiatives designed to help stimulate economic growth.
Based in Worcester, The Business of Mindfulness was created by Chris Hopkirk and Hayley Aghanian to provide Mental Health & Wellbeing strategies to companies to support and improve their employee's wellbeing and in turn, help create a more successful business. This is delivered through a consultancy service that offers training courses equipping businesses by raising awareness of the matter and how they can support their workforce and prevent it from being an issue.
Chris Hopkirk, managing director at The Business of Mindfulness, realised how hard it was to create a sustainable culture of safety for employees who felt vulnerable about their mental health and wellbeing in his previous experience in various smaller businesses.
This is where Chris became aware of the issue, dealing with his own anxiety in running a business and how the team at all levels are affected by issues of their mental health.
The business’ Start Up Loan was delivered by the programme’s partner covering the region, Enterprise Loans East Midlands.
Chris Hopkirk (pictured), managing director at The Business of Mindfulness commented: “Mindfulness and the pursuit of this business has enabled me to become aware of my reactive behaviours and by working mindfully I was able to bring an equanimity to my day-to-day engagement and ultimately was able to introduce it to my staff.
“Pursuing this passion I had developed, starting a business to share this awareness with others who might be seeking similar support seemed like a logical step for my career. With support from the British Business Bank and their partner Enterprise Loans East Midlands, we have already been able to make significant ground and we are thrilled with the results and feedback we are receiving from the businesses we have assisted.”
Sophie Dale-Black, UK Network director for the Midlands and North of England, Start Up Loans said: “As Chris demonstrates, you can further your business ambitions at any age. It’s why we encourage anyone with a good business idea to get in touch and learn more about how the Start Up Loans programme might be able to help turn it into reality.
“It is interesting to note the high proportion of the funding during and after the pandemic, suggesting that many people of 50+ re-evaluated and took action to pursue their business ambitions.”
The Start Up Loans programme helps people start or grow their businesses and is part of the government-owned British Business Bank’s remit to making finance markets work better for smaller businesses.
They can borrow up to £25,000 at a fixed interest rate of 6 per cent per annum and repay the loan over one to five years. The programme also provides 12 months of free business mentoring.
If you would like to learn more about Start Up Loans support, visit the website.
