Grant for Business Investment
Grant for Business Investment provides capital grants to businesses to support sustainable investment in England.
Please note that the scheme closed for new applications from 1 February 2011, except for large exceptional projects and applications to
DECC
from offshore wind equipment manufacturers.
What is GBI?
- GBI is a discretionary scheme that provides a capital grant to businesses to support sustainable investment in England. Its aim is to help businesses expand, rationalise, modernise or diversify.
What are large exceptional projects?
Large projects are those in which the grant being sought is £2m or more.
Exceptional projects are those which either:
- mitigate or avoid a significant downturn in the local labour market; or
- address a significant market failure.
To meet the first criterion a project must show that it is providing an appropriate response to a downturn in the local labour market that is demonstrably significant. The downturn could be the result of an isolated local closure, or the local impact of a UK-wide trend. The assessment of whether a local labour market downturn is significant will be made on a case by case basis using labour market statistics and comparison with previous cases. In order to be considered exceptional, a project must both have a demonstrably large impact on the local labour market and provide an appropriate response to specific local labour market conditions, such as avoiding structural unemployment by safeguarding jobs or addressing an existing and persistent skills mismatch through job creation and/or training.
A market failure is when the market, by itself, does not lead to an economically efficient outcome. Addressing a market failure in the context of GBI will include generating benefits such as R+D spillovers, skills enhancement or others that have wider value but which may not directly benefit the applicant. Whether a market failure is significant will be determined case by case, based on the information provided by the applicant and our own analysis.
Do I qualify for the funding from DECC to support offshore wind equipment manufacturers?
What other criteria apply?
- GBI is only open to businesses investing in an English Assisted Area. If you are unsure whether you are in an Assisted Area, use our post code checker.
- Most manufacturing businesses are eligible to apply, as are businesses in service industries that supply a national rather than local market. Applicants can be companies, partnerships or sole traders.
- European Commission restrictions apply in some sectors, including synthetic fibres, shipbuilding, steel, coal, fisheries and some agricultural products.
How much is available?
- This depends on the needs of the project and its impact on productivity and skills. Successful businesses typically receive around 10-15% of a project's total eligible capital expenditure but support can vary widely either side of these figures depending on the need and quality of the project.
How do I find out more?
• Detailed Guidelines covering the scheme are here: Grant for business investment: guidelines (PDF, 839KB).
How can I apply?
• There are links to the application form and the supporting financial appendices here:
Grant for business investment: application form (PDF, 3673KB)
Grant for business investment: financial appendices to application form (PDF, 352KB)
Potential applicants are advised to contact BIS (Pam Creais) to check their eligibility before submitting an application.
Other forms of support?
Solutions for Business is a wide portfolio of targeted, publicly funded business support products and services that can be accessed via the business support finder on the BL web site. A range of products and services are available and are designed to help qualifying English businesses grow and succeed.
The Regional Growth Fund is a new £1.4bn three year fund that will operate across England to stimulate private sector led sustainable economic growth and employment.
