Having provided interest-free loans to help support aspiring and existing business owners within Leicestershire and Rutland since 1542, The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity has announced that it is now welcoming applications for grants of up to £5,000 to support businesses within the county.
Following a hugely successful pilot business grant scheme in 2021, The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity has ensured further support be delivered in the same way this year, as the country continues to recover from the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A total of £50,000 has been allocated by The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity to be delivered in business grants for 2022, and provides an additional opportunity for one of the city’s oldest charities to help more businesses at what has been an unprecedented period. Whereas the charity’s interest-free business loans are to be repaid, these grants of up to £5,000 require no repayment by recipients at all.
Based at Friar’s Mill in the heart of Leicester city centre, The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity provides unique interest-free loans to the value of £20,000 to new and existing businesses in Leicestershire and Rutland to aid start-up or development.
With no interest to pay on loans over a nine-year period and a three-year break before repayments commence, The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity’s support has helped a number of well-known businesses within the county, including Barrie Stephen Hair whose owner, Barrie Stephen, is patron of the charity.
Following the culmination of last year’s pilot business grant scheme, a number of businesses benefited from the charity’s funding, including milliner Giulia Mio, who operates within the city centre’s Maker’s Yard.
Giulia found out about the grants last year via Cool As Leicester and added: “The charity provided something of a ‘double relief’ for me. Because I work in a shared studio, the Government funding meant that we had to split it and I wasn’t eligible for the full amount.
Finding out that there was a local charity that was willing to provide some financial support was a moment where all I could say was, ‘thank goodness’. I felt that the charity was thinking about people like me or those that share my workspace. Even if I was unsuccessful in applying, I was happy that there was an organisation in Leicester with good intentions.”
Anybody interested in applying for a business grant of up to £5,000 from The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity can do so by visiting www.stwcharity.co.uk/business-grants, where you can also find further information on the scheme.
The application deadline is 31 August 2022. Applications will be reviewed by the grant committee, with final decisions taken on grant awards during the week commencing 12 September 2022.
For more information on The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity, please visit www.stwcharity.co.uk