SME leaders from across the country are benefitting from the 90% funded business growth course, Help to Grow: Management. Delivered in collaboration with industry experts and experienced entrepreneurs, the course enhances leadership and management skills, helping to drive economic growth nationwide.
Launched in 2021, the Help to Grow: Management course has been created to provide the management tools needed to help talented business leaders innovate and grow their business. Designed to be manageable alongside full-time work, the 12-week blended learning course includes modules that cover financial management, digital adoption, leading high-performance teams, and responsible business practices.
Having held the Small Business Charter accreditation since 2015, UWE Bristol Business School is proud to be delivering the course across the South-West, building on the university’s proven track record in working with, supporting and developing businesses in the region.
UWE Bristol is a leading university in delivering the programme and has already guided over 200 SME leaders through it. Now going into their third year of delivery, UWE Bristol looks forward to welcoming more SME leaders to the course in 2023.
- Develop a tailored business growth plan
- Access to 10 hours of one-to-one mentor support
- Regular peer group calls
- Join other SME leaders through both local and national alumni networks.
Wiltshire based business owner, Mark West, CEO of FUNdays Club Limited and FDC Training Consultancy, completed the course with UWE Bristol in 2022. Reflecting on his time on the course, Mark said: “It’s a great programme…there’s a framework and a tool for everything you need. If you’ve got a problem, then there’s something you can pull from, a module you can pull from, a framework you can pull from. On top of that, you’ve got a network of business owners you can talk to, either in session or one-to-one.”
When asked if any changes had been made since completing the programme, Mark commented: “A couple of changes, the main one is the financial management systems…We’ve now got a financial management system that works and we can foresee way ahead and actually budget for bigger ventures and expansion and see where the money goes and reduce expenses where they’re not needed.”
Alongside the twelve modules, business leaders on the programme benefit from regular peer group calls, have access to 10 hours of one-to-one mentor support, and will be able to join other SME leaders through both local and national alumni networks.
Upon completion of the course, participants will have developed a tailored business growth plan that sets out to drive productivity and revenue growth.
Exeter business leader, Ashley Thomas, Associate Director of Coops & Co, completed the course at UWE Bristol in April 2022 and told us: “The wider community and alumni network that comes post the programme, has been really great. To know that there is continual ongoing support and that you are part of a bigger family with lots of other small businesses going through the same sort of things, and having those opportunities to connect, has been really helpful”.
Help to Grow: Management is 90% subsidised by the government, meaning it costs just £750 for business leaders.
Natasha Mortimer, Co-Founder of Imagineerium and UWE Bristol Alumni said: “I could not recommend the Help to Grow course enough to anyone managing an SME and looking to grow their business – and it’s 90% funded by the government! The course is delivered in digestible chunks and supported by peer group sessions and a personal mentor. It’s been an intense three months but so worth it!”.
If you’d like to benefit from this exciting course, UWE Bristol are now taking expressions of interest for their Year Three cohorts, which start in September 2023. To find out more about the programme, visit UWE Bristol’s website or contact the team on helptogrow@uwe.ac.uk.
