Hello and welcome to the September edition of Warwickshire Means Business.

This month we are delighted to bring the news that the Local Communities & Enterprise Fund has passed the £4million mark in loans awarded to small businesses across the county.

The LCE Fund is part of the Warwickshire Investment Fund and delivered by Coventry & Warwickshire Reinvestment Trust on behalf of the County Council and has proved immensely popular and effective. In its first two years it has already supported 68 businesses with the result that more than 650 jobs have been safeguarded or will be created. The economic impact of those jobs is £16.42million, a 4.5 times return on investment, so it is a programme which has truly delivered value for businesses and communities across Warwickshire.

In this edition we also feature the Warwickshire Business Energy Advice Service (WBEAS) which is delivered by Coventry City Council on behalf of the County Council and the five District and Borough Councils. We report how Harry Burrows Fabrications, a family firm based in Exhall is targeting further growth and recruitment following a game-changing WBEAS grant. WBEAS has more funding to allocate so please do get in touch if your business could benefit, initially from a free energy audit.

Southam business Trident Hydraulics is scaling up with support from the Warwickshire Manufacturing Growth Programme. We tell their story while we also reflect upon the successful Coventry & Warwickshire Food & Drink Showcase which took place this week. Our county and region has a wonderfully delicious and diverse food and drink offer and the Showcase at Warwick Racecourse provided a great opportunity for independent producers to promote their businesses and build contacts.

We hear how a series of Industry Round Tables are equipping Business Skills Advisors from Warwickshire Skills Hub with invaluable insights into the skills needs of the future. All this plus the customary comprehensive round ups of Upcoming Events and local News-in-Brief - and lots of pointers and links to where you can access the broad range of business support from Warwickshire County Council and our partners. Please do get in touch if any of the programmes could help your business.