The Growth Voucher (GV) programme is a £30 million project which was announced by the Chancellor in the 2013 Budget and championed by the PM’s Enterprise Adviser, Lord Young. The programme delivers subsidies to help businesses access the advice they need to help them grow.
Businesses can receive up to £2,000 for strategic advice on areas including making the most of digital technology
Conditions apply and the advisers must be members of a qualifying Professional Association
UKITA's members are eligible to apply free of charge to be included in the portal as an accredited adviser
Businesses can apply for up to £2,000 to help finance specialist businesses support. You’ll have to match the amount with your own funds.
Types of Advice you can get funding for:
Growth Vouchers can be used to obtain strategic advice on any of the following categories:
Making the most of digital technology
Marketing, attracting and keeping customers online and with software
Managing cashflow, late payments and negotiating finance
Improving Leadership and Management
Developing skills and taking on staff
Eligibility
The Growth Vouchers programme is available to small businesses in England who have been trading for at least one year, have 49 employees or fewer and have not sought strategic business advice in the last three years.
The Advisers
The government has recognised the value of advice given by members of professional bodies:
"We want to ensure that advisers are qualified to provide advice and that there is a route of redress available if a business receives bad advice. Professional membership at the levels stated will ensure that advisors meet baseline standards and that there is a complaints procedure in place. While this won’t guarantee quality, it should reduce the risk of bad advice and protect businesses to some degree."
Professional bodies whose members are eligible to give subsidised advice under this project are currently:
Area of advice
Eligible members
Making the most of digital technology
BCS The Chartered Institute for IT - (CITP) UKITA (UK IT Association)
Why are the advisers required to be members of professional bodies?
"We want to ensure that advisers are qualified to provide advice and that there is a route of redress available if a business receives bad advice. Professional membership at the levels stated will ensure that advisers meet baseline standards and that there is a complaints procedure in place. While this won’t guarantee quality, it should reduce the risk of bad advice and protect businesses to some degree. The rating facility on the Marketplace, and other experience, qualifications, references and training, will help small businesses decide who to select"
WHAT TO DO NEXT?
If you are a BUSINESS looking for strategic business advice and help click here
If you are or wish to apply to be an ADVISER in the IT/digital category click here
For more information on the Growth Voucher programme itself, visit www.gov.uk or call 0300 4562210.
UKITA Member Suppliers
Quality Mark Member
Clickingmad Ltd - Ecommerce & SEO
Since February 2000 Clickingmad Ltd has prided itself on 1st class customer service, designing and developing web solutions for a wide variety of clients. Offices in Shropshire, Birmingham and London we are ideally placed to help with any development enquiry. With clients large and small we pride ourselves on our delivery of professional yet affordable solutions. We are Magento developers, Joomla experts and SEO professionals.
PerfectArc is a professional and well-regarded Web, Database and Software company located in Shropshire and operating nationally. Our client base includes blue chip household names, small local sole traders, and everything in between. Our clients tell us we're unique. Find out why.
Ascendancy is a Shropshire based web design and internet marketing consultancy. We help companies to generate business on the web by increasing their website traffic, encouraging repeat visits and improving conversion rates.
Since February 2000 Clickingmad Ltd has prided itself on 1st class customer service, designing and developing web solutions for a wide variety of clients. Offices in Shropshire, Birmingham and London we are ideally placed to help with any development enquiry. With clients large and small we pride ourselves on our delivery of professional yet affordable solutions. We are Magento developers, Joomla experts and SEO professionals.
PerfectArc is a professional and well-regarded Web, Database and Software company located in Shropshire and operating nationally. Our client base includes blue chip household names, small local sole traders, and everything in between. Our clients tell us we're unique. Find out why.
Ascendancy is a Shropshire based web design and internet marketing consultancy. We help companies to generate business on the web by increasing their website traffic, encouraging repeat visits and improving conversion rates.
The Ultimate IT Support for Small Businesses & Home Users. The PC Support Group specialises in providing high quality, cost effective IT Support to small businesses. Whether you have a one-off IT support issue or you require on-going computer maintenance, we can help.
Applying for a voucher is simple and free but you are not guaranteed to be successful in your application
If you are given a voucher, it will be for ONE of the 5 areas of advice as decided by the scheme operators
You can then pick any adviser in the Marketplace Portal for that category and with the 'Growth Vouchers' icon showing on their profile
You pay the adviser when the work is complete and claim 50% back using the voucher code?
Eligibility
The Growth Vouchers programme is available to small businesses in England who have been trading for at least one year, have 49 employees or fewer and have not sought strategic business advice in the last three years.
Types of IT and digital advice that are eligible for Growth Voucher subsidy include:
The scheme covers strategic advice but NOT delivery of actual work - you can go ahead with that afterwards if you decide to but it won't be covered by the voucher and there will be no element of subsidy
You can't use the voucher with an adviser from whom you have had strategic advice or if you have had any strategic advice from other sources in the last 3 years
HOW TO APPLY FOR A VOUCHER
Sign up here. It's quick, free and doesn't commit you to anything at all www.gov.uk/apply-growth-vouchers (Look for the green 'Start now' box)
A scheme 'delivery partner will contact you to ask you some relevant questions about your business and your requirements for advice and help
You will then find out whether or not you have been allocated a voucher and if so, which of the 5 categories it is for
With a voucher in hand, you can use the Marketplace Portal to find advisers near to you who are accredited for the advice category you have been 'vouchered' for - Use the 'Find an adviser' and 'Only show Growth Voucher advisers' options.
For more information on the Growth Voucher programme itself, visit www.gov.uk or call 0300 4562210.
INFORMATION FOR IT AND DIGITAL ADVISERS
UKITA FULL members and members of BCS The Chartered Institute for IT - Chartered IT Professional (CITP) level are eligible to take part as Accredited advisers in the £30 million Growth Vouchers scheme read the background to the programme here.
UKITA Members are now eligible to apply for £30 million Growth Vouchers scheme
You will appear in a well-promoted directory as an accredited Growth Voucher IT and web adviser
Clients can obtain a 50% subsidy of up to £2,000 towards purchasing strategic IT advice from you
There is no charge to become accredited or to be entered in the Enterprise Nation Marketplace which is the way that clients searching the Growth Voucher Marketplace for accredited IT/Digital advisers will search for you.
In order to apply, you'll need to:
give strategic advice that helps small businesses grow
be a member of a qualifying trade or professional body and
Make the subject line something like 'please find attached PI insurance and UKITA membership certificate for the IT and web advisers category'
Wait to get an email confirming that you are now accepted as a Growth Voucher adviser - members have reported that the turnaround is quick and efficient
Check your listing and ensure that the Growth Voucher adviser icon appears against it (it's the diagonal bottom-left-to-top-right ribbon arrow with Growth Vouchers on it)
When you have it, send us a link to the listing on the Marketplace so that we can add you to the list shown on these pages
UKITA members who have any questions about this programme can contact the UKITA membership office on 0844 445 7571 via the live chat widget in the website or on [email protected]
For more information on the Growth Voucher programme itself, visit www.gov.uk or call 0300 4562210.
If you are not a UKITA member or BCS CITP holder you can still register for the marketplace but you will not be shown on the 'only show Growth Voucher advisers'' view and your work cannot be part-funded by a voucher.
You can apply to join UKITA here. We are an business organisation and trade association dedicated to the interests of IT-related suppliers in the small and medium-sized category (this means 1-250 employees - which is around 97% of the IT businesses in the UK). We are dedicated to the interests of IT-related suppliers and to bringing IT and technology best practice to the UK's real business economy.
You will need to select one of the FULL membership options based on the size of your business and during the process, you will be required to read and accept our Code of Conduct and agree to be bound by it.
Do read it carefully because we take it very seriously. We investigate complaints from clients and from other UKITA members and we will take measures against any cases which are judged to breach our code which can include cancelling your membership.
business credentials - UKITA membership and optional Quality Mark logos
opportunities to work with other members who have signed up to the same code of conduct as you have.
You will also have the satisfaction of knowing that your membership supports our efforts in representing the views of interests of the small and medium-sized IT businesses like your own in Whitehall, to local authorities and to Brussels.
