Chancellor visits Aston to launch small business scheme

Chancellor Rishi Sunak visited Aston Business School yesterday to mark the launch of a new scheme to help small business leaders.

Mr Sunak (pictured) delivered a talk to participants at the business school in Birmingham, taking part in the first tranche of the Help to Grow scheme, on the critical role small businesses can play in boosting UK productivity.

He then took part in a group activity and led a discussion about their own business models and opportunities for growth.

The scheme, which was announced by the Chancellor at the March Budget and opened for applications in May, will give 30,000 SMEs access to world-class business expertise on everything from financial management to marketing, and is a pivotal part of the government 's Plan for Jobs.

The Chancellor said: “Small businesses are key to our innovation and economy and will therefore be an essential part to our recovery from the pandemic, which is why we are levelling up their skills through the Help to Grow schemes.

“I want to bring some of the best bits of management training from around the world to help boost productivity here in the UK.

“Help to Grow: Management will ensure our brilliant SMEs seize every opportunity to grow, fuelling our Plan for Jobs by boosting productivity in all corners of the UK. ”

Five universities have already started to offer courses - Aston, Portsmouth, Derby, Nottingham, and Birmingham City. Over August, four universities will follow - Coventry, Kingston, Strathclyde and Nottingham Trent.

The programme is being delivered by business schools across the country and was developed in close partnership with the business community to ensure it is as relevant as possible.

NatWest, Barclays and HSBC will support thousands of places on the training programme through combined funding of £2.75 million.

They will also contribute their expertise to the curriculum, mentoring programme and alumni network.

Mark Hart, member of the expert advisory council and Professor at Aston Business school, said: “Small firms will drive the recovery as they have always done in previous economic downturns and equipping their leaders with the leadership and management skills from the UK 's leading business schools will ensure that they will build even more resilient, innovative and sustainable businesses capable of responding to the emerging opportunities in their chosen markets.

“This is a practical, intensive 12-week programme designed by some of our top academics to provide the skills required to improve the performance and productivity of small firms across all sectors of the economy. ”