Welsh business grants – the small business guide

Getting a grant for your small business can be a great way to achieve your business goals – from expanding, developing new products, or hiring new staff. The UK has a wide range of small business grants you can apply for, but sometimes the more niche a grant you apply for, the better.

That’s why it can be a good idea to apply for grants specific to your local area. In this guide, we’ll be covering the best small business grants in Wales. Keep reading to find out what business grants are available to you – as well as how to apply.

Apply for:

Welsh government business grants
Welsh business grants by local area
Welsh business grants for young people
Welsh business grants for innovation

Finding Welsh business grants

There are plenty of ways you can find business grants in Wales online. To help you narrow it down, we’ve broken this down into various topics.

Welsh government business grants

Business Wales, run by the Welsh government, makes it easy to find business grants relevant to your business using their finance locator. You’re able to search for grants by keywords and find those that are most relevant to your business.

Business Wales’s featured finance scheme is from the Development Bank of Wales, which focuses on loans and investments for micro to medium sized businesses – including loans from £1,000 to £50,000 for start up growth funding.

Welsh business grants by local area

You can also find business grants focused on developing your local area. You can find these on Google or by checking with your local council, but we’ve listed a few below to give you an idea of what to expect.

Cardiff Growth Fund

Grant amount: £2,500-£10,000

The Cardiff Growth Fund is for companies in the Cardiff Local Authority that align with the city’s Stronger, Fairer, Greener Recovery Strategy. You’ll need to meet the following criteria:

be a limited company, registered social enterprise, or charity
have been trading over three years
have an operating turnover in last three years above the VAT threshold (£90,000)
have less than 250 employees

City of Newport Business Grants

Grant amount: 50 per cent of net costs up to £2,500 for businesses outside the city centre, and grants up to £5,000 for city centre businesses

This grant matches the funding you can put into your own business and can be used to invest in areas such as plant, ICT equipment and software, website development, and any related training.

You’ll need to be able to provide evidence that you already have the funds to cover the total cost of your investment, as your grants will be paid retrospectively.

Swansea Pre-Start Grant

Grant amount: Up to £10,000

Swansea Councils’ Pre-Start Grant is available to local businesses in the pre-start stage, so it’s a great opportunity for those with a new business idea in the Swansea area. You can use the grant for anything from equipment and training, to getting accreditation and developing your marketing strategy.

To receive this grant, you’ll need to provide both a business plan and a cash flow forecast for the next 12 months as part of your application – we have guides on both to help you.

The maximum grant you can receive is £10,000, but this will depend on your expenditure. You’ll receive 95 per cent of the project costs for the first £1,000 of expenditure and 50 per cent for expenditure between £1,000 and £10,000. 

Bridgend Business Development Grant

Grant amount: Between £5,000 and £25,000 (based on half of your maximum project cost)

Small businesses in Bridgend can apply for this grant if they have a project to help create a vibrant local community. The grant covers half of your expected project costs. To apply, you’ll need to meet the following criteria:

be a sole trader, or have a partnership, limited company, registered social enterprise, charity, or co-operative
have an operating turnover in last three years above the current VAT threshold
have been trading more than three years
have a business address in Bridgend County Borough
have less than 250 employees

Powys and Ceredigion Transforming Towns Placemaking Grant 2022-25

Grant amount: To be determined by your local authority

If your business is based in Powys and Ceredigion, then you’re eligible to apply for government funding for town centres across the mid-Wales region, as part of an investment of £5.8m.

You’ll need to have a project in mind that will help transform your town. Some examples include developing empty or run down properties into businesses or improving the appearance of existing properties.

Vale of Glamorgan Council Start-Up Bursary

Bursary amount: Up to £5,000

If you plan to start a new business in the Vale of Glamorgan, you can apply for this bursary to help you get started. As well as your bursary, you’ll also get access to advice and support to help develop your business idea.

In order to apply, you’ll need to submit a business plan and a three-year cash flow forecast alongside your application form.

Welsh business grants for young people

Grant amount: Up to £2,000

If you’re under the age of 25, living in Wales, and want to become self-employed, then you can apply for the Young Person’s Start Up Grant.

You can spend your grant on the initial start-up costs of becoming self-employed – such as equipment, training, and marketing. On top of your grant, you’ll also get one-to-one support from your own business adviser and access to webinars on business skills.

In order to be eligible for the grant, you’ll need to meet the following criteria:

not be in education*, training, or full-time employment
if you are working, only be working part time (under 16 hours)
plan to become self-employed full time

*You can currently be in education if you plan to be self-employed within three months of completing your studies.

Welsh business grants for innovation

If your business is an innovator, that could be your niche for finding the right grant. The Development Bank of Wales is always investing in Welsh tech companies.

Welsh businesses are also able to apply for funding from InnovateUK. This is government-backed and you can search by keywords to find funding most related to your business.

Innovative companies could also be able to get tax relief for research and development (R&D) initiatives – we have a whole guide to R&D tax relief to help you with your claim.

How to apply for Welsh business grants

But in order to win one of these grants, you’ll need to write a great application form. We have a guide which covers everything you need to know about small business grants – including a downloadable application form guide.

Download your business grant application guide

You need a strong application to be in with a chance of securing a business grant.

Download your free guide to small business grant applications for the best possible chance of winning a Welsh business grant.

Download

And if you’re still looking for funding opportunities, our own small business grant competition, Business Boost, runs each year. Business Boost allows one lucky entrepreneur a £25,000 grant to help grow their business.

Do you have any tips for writing a good grant application? Let us know in the comments below.

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