Introduction

The South West of England Regional Development Agency delivers Grant for Business Investment (GBI) aimed at businesses of all sizes looking to invest in assisted areas that need a grant to take their vision forward.  
 
The scheme focuses support on high-quality, innovative, knowledge-based projects that lead to long-term improvements in productivity, skills and employment in South West England. The majority of jobs created are expected to be at NVQ Level 2 and above.  
 
Projects such as launching a new business, expanding existing companies, introducing new technology into manufacturing, or taking a new product from its early stages all the way through to production will be eligible for support.  
 
Each application has to meet certain criteria: 

• Projects must be located in an assisted area;
• A proven need for financial support;
• Display quality features, such as good skills levels and growth in Gross Value Added;
• Projects must be funded mainly by the applicant or from other private sector sources;
• Projects must involve capital investment on fixed assets such as property or machinery;
• Projects must create new jobs or safeguard existing employment;
• Projects should be viable, competitive and profitable;
• Projects should not be irrevocably committed prior to the application;
• Projects should provide positive benefits to both the regional and national economy.

The minimum threshold for grant applications is £10,000. Grants up to £2 million will be appraised within the South West RDA and referred to the South West Industrial Development Board. Any projects needing grants over £2 million will be appraised by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR).

Assisted Areas

The Assisted Areas map falls into three categories known as Tiers 1, 2 and 3.  
 
Tier 1 covers the whole of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. 
GBI is available to any size of business subject to meeting the eligibility criteria up to a maximum of 30% of capital expenditure. If you are a medium sized enterprise this can increase to 40% and for a small enterprise it can increase to 50%.  
 
Tier 2 covers most of the Plymouth area.  
GBI is available to any size of business subject to meeting the eligibility criteria up to a maximum of 15% of capital expenditure. If you are a medium sized enterprise this can increase to 25% and for a small enterprise it can increase to 35%. A Tier 2 Eligibility Ward List (Adobe Acrobat Reader Document - 20.59kb) is available. 
 
Tier 3 covers the whole of the South West Region not in Tiers 1 and 2.  
GBI is only available to small and medium enterprises. The maximum grant available subject to meeting the eligibility criteria is 20% of capital expenditure for a small enterprise and 10% of capital expenditure for a medium sized enterprise. 
 
Please read the Small Medium Enterprise (SME) definition (Adobe Acrobat Reader Document - 23.71kb) for confirmation of company status.

Jobs and Skills

Projects must create new jobs or safeguard existing employment. The more your project increases skills and involves investment in the skills base, the more value will be placed on this criterion when considering support. A compulsory test requires all applicants to achieve a weighted average of at least NVQ Level 2 measured by reference to the Standard Occupation Codes 2000 (Adobe Acrobat Reader Document - 1759.87kb).

Productivity and GVA

Productivity remains one of the key tests, but productivity is driven by five main factors: skills, investment, innovation, enterprise and competition, and we are looking for evidence of all of these in applications. A copy of the spreadsheet used to calculate growth in GVA per FTE is freely available. Gross Value Added will form part of the initial appraisal process which we will use to evaluate your project against the performance of your business sector.

South West RDA and GBI

South West RDA pursues a strategy to achieve the right kind of economic growth for South West England; this means growth which; 
- is productivity-led 
- is within environmental limits 
- takes into account the needs and opportunities of key places in the region.  
Applications for GBI which do not meet all three criteria are not ruled out, but will have to score highly in terms of other quality features to succeed. 

Supporting Documents and Downloads

GBI Brochure (Adobe Acrobat Reader Document - 2869.91kb) 
 
GBI Guidelines (Adobe Acrobat Reader Document - 909.74kb) 
 
GBI Application Form (Microsoft Word Document - 679.42kb) 
 
GBI Financial Appendices (Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet - 174.59kb) 
 
GBI Enquiry Questionnaire (Microsoft Word Document - 186.36kb) 
 

If you have read the above information and think you are eligible for the Grant for Business Investment (GBI) , please download the GBI Enquiry Questionnaire (Microsoft Word Document - 186.36kb), fill in your answers under each individual question, and then either return it to us by email or call us so that we can advise you further. 
 
If you require a grant claim form, please contact the Business Investment Team directly. 
 
For more information on the Grant for Business Investment (GBI) scheme, please contact: 
 
Business Investment Team  
South West Regional Development Agency 
North Quay House 
Sutton Harbour 
Plymouth 
PL4 0RA 
 
Telephone: +44 (0) 1752 234842 
 
Email: sim.yung@southwestrda.org.uk