Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government is taking to standardise business support for small businesses by (a) local enterprise partnerships and (b) local authorities.

Supporting small businesses is central to our Industrial Strategy. We want to see the private sector flourish across the country—where innovative ideas can be taken from theory to practice and where businesses have the tools and resources they need to start-up and grow. Earlier this year, we launched the £400 million Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund for SMEs and have already rolled out finance to over 100 businesses.

Small businesses in England can access business support through GOV.UK, the National Business Support Helpline and Growth Hubs. Over the last three year, Government has supported and invested in the creation of a network of 38 Growth Hubs (one in each Local Enterprise Partnership Area), providing businesses with tailored advice and support. To date, Growth Hubs have engaged with over 570,000 businesses, and helped almost 11,400 individuals to start a business.

Businesses in Newcastle Upon Tyne Central have been served by the North East Growth Hub since its launch in 2016. To date, it has engaged with over 7,311 businesses, helped 728 individuals to start a business and delivered 117 intensive diagnostic interventions. Within the Industrial Strategy White Paper, the Government has just announced that it will continue to invest in Growth Hubs and build on the existing programmes.