Start Up Loans hits £1bn milestone of loans to UK small businesses, with £55m in 5,880 loans to the East Midlands

Added by Love Business East Midlands | 13 September 2023

Start Up Loans, part of the British Business Bank, has delivered more than £1bn of loans across the UK since its inception in 2012. The loans have been issued to 105,109 businesses, at an average of £9,547 per business. 

Of those loans, the East Midlands has received nearly £55m in 5,880 loans across the region. The average loan amount in the East Midlands is £9,343. 

Supporting under-represented groups

The Start Up Loans programme provides a means of reaching under-represented groups who are excluded from mainstream finance by helping them start businesses. 

Of the £55m in the East Midlands, £20m (36%) has been lent to female business owners and £10m (18%) has been lent to people from Black, Asian and Other Ethnic Minority backgrounds (not including White Minorities). 

Just 4% of the UK’s small businesses in 2021 were majority-led by people from an ethnic minority group and only 20% of new businesses had female founders according to The Rose Review. The Start Up Loans programme provides a means of reaching under-represented groups who are excluded from mainstream finance by helping them start businesses. 

Backing 18-24s to start a business

Young people in the East Midlands between 18-24 years old have received £6.6m (12%) of loans since the programme began.

Local breakdown of the loans 

In the East Midlands the county with the most loans was Nottinghamshire with 1,479 loans valued at just more than £14m. In second place was Derbyshire with 1,405 loans totalling nearly £11.8m.  

Case study: Shahjees

Three female entrepreneurs used funding from Start Up Loans to launch an Indian restaurant and takeaway in Nottingham. Farzana Ali Choudhry, Kiran Hassan and Mariam Siddiqua secured £39,750 through First Enterprise – Enterprise Loans, enabling them to launch Shahjees, which specialises in a range of Indian dishes, including Chaat – a type of savoury snack.

The three friends used the funding for refurbishments, progressing a kitchen fit-out, while also purchasing furniture, marketing and signage.

Kiran Hassan commented:

“Starting a business can be daunting and takes a lot of hard work in the best of times, but even more so in the uncertain situation we find ourselves in now, especially for the hospitality sector. On the other hand, we found an opportunity in the Nottingham market for speciality Asian dishes, so along with my other two female business partners, we decided to take a calculated leap of faith to capitalise on this gap in the market, which so far seems to be paying off.

“None of this would have been possible without the funding which we are extremely grateful for to have secured from Start Up Loans through First Enterprise. The expert advice we received from First Enterprise’s adviser, proved to be invaluable as we felt supported and well informed throughout the whole process from start to finish.”

Dr Sophie Dale-Black, UK Network Director for the Midlands, British Business Bank said:

“Shahjees is a great example of how Start Up Loans can help businesses take advantage of a gap in the market to start up and thrive. It’s really good to hear such positive feedback about their experience of the programme and we are excited to see what they are able to achieve in the future as their business progresses.”

Small Business Minister Kevin Hollinrake said: “Across the UK, thousands of small businesses have now been supported by over a billion pounds in Start Up Loans. This crucial support is enabling enterprising companies like Shahjees start and scale up their ventures and I urge even more to follow in their footsteps.”

Value for money to the UK taxpayer

The Start Up Loan scheme has been shown to be value for money to the taxpayer with an independent review showing the economic benefits of the scheme are 5.7 times the economic cost.

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