Start-up loan campaign launches for NI's young entrepreneurs

  • Photo: Coleraine's Tracy McAllister was supported by Start Up Loans to start her own interiors and lifestyle store, By The Sea

    A spin-out from the British Business Bank, Start Up Loans is launching a 'UK Unlocked' campaign and encouraging young entrepreneurs in Northern Ireland to join its scheme in response to the disruptive impact of Covid-19.

    The organisation said that since 2012, it has delivered over 387 loans to unemployed people in Northern Ireland, worth over £2.1m. It also claimed that since then, 30% of people to have received government-backed funding in the region were unemployed.

    Start Up Loans' data indicates that the scheme is particularly effective in enabling young entrepreneurs to start up a business, with millennials representing more than half (54%) of all previously unemployed loan recipients since 2012.

    Double the number of Gen Z (18-24 year old) applicants have used the scheme in an attempt to get out of unemployment in 2020, compared to 2019.

    The Start Up Loans scheme was initially set up as the UK economy was recovering from the 2008 credit crisis. Since then, there have been 1,281 start-up loans issued locally.

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    UK Small Business Minister Paul Scully said: “Northern Ireland gave the world artificial fertiliser, milk chocolate and Derry Girls, and the UK Government is doing everything it can to champion that world-leading innovation and entrepreneurial spirit through the British Business Bank.

    “The Start Up Loans programme has helped more than 1,200 pioneering Northern Ireland businesses to get off the ground, including many owned by young or unemployed people, and so I encourage aspiring entrepreneurs in Northern Ireland to explore the support on offer from the UK Government.”

    Richard Bearman, Managing Director at Start Up Loans added: “Start Up Loans is uniquely positioned to drive the nation’s investment in creative, entrepreneurial talent of any age, thanks to our extensive network of delivery partners and support services.

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    "As well as a loan, we support individuals with the practical steps they need to take to begin their own enterprise from writing business plans, accounting and marketing, as well as access to learning with partners such as The Open University," Richard continued.

    “It is paramount that we do everything to empower the next generation of young working talent, who have an important part to play in unlocking the UK’s economic recovery, by giving them every chance to succeed, whatever their circumstances.

    "Unemployment can have a catastrophic impact on an individual’s financial security, self-confidence and ability to apply for finance from lenders, and the support provided by Start Up Loans can be of particular use to younger, less experienced business owners.”

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