Mid Ulster District Council recently held a business event at the Burnavon Theatre, Cookstown on Friday 17 May, to celebrate the success of recently completed business programmes, and launch a new suite of business funding and support available, including the new Go Succeed service.
From 2020, investment of £1.1 million was secured by Council part funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the Investment for Growth and Jobs Northern Ireland (2014-20) Programme, Invest NI and the Council, which enabled 714 Mid Ulster businesses to benefit from tailored support and funding through programmes including Gearing for Growth, Tender Ready, Transform and Digital First.
The morning was attended by 45 business representatives, some businesses who took part in these programmes, Killbran Toy Trailers, AM Electrical, EH Design, AJ Armstrong, and Roof Window Specialists, shared their experience on a video which was played at the event, and outlined how the support had taken their growth plans to a new level.
Go Succeed, the new go-to source for expert business advice led by Northern Ireland’s eleven local Councils, funded by the Shared Prosperity Fund and the Councils, was also launched at the event.
Speaking at the event, Chair of Mid Ulster District Council, Councillor Dominic Molloy highlighted the success of recent business programmes, he said:
“I’m delighted to report that the business results from these programmes were nothing short of amazing. In addition to the extremely positive feedback from our business owners and managers, an Independent Evaluation confirmed some eye watering achievements – here’s just a snapshot of only a few of these; 2,992 days of support were delivered to 714 businesses; 344 new jobs were created at an estimated value of £7.33 million; and 32 businesses won new work of £28.45 million.
“Overall, as a result of the £1.1 million secured from the Investment for Growth and Jobs Programme, Invest NI and the Council, our Independent Evaluation has reported an economic impact to the District estimated at a staggering £37 million! What an incredible achievement by everyone involved. I look forward to hearing about the future success from the new Go Succeed programme, and other upcoming support programmes available.”
Alan McKeown, Executive Director of Regional Business at Invest NI said: “Today has been a great opportunity to highlight the successful partnership between Invest NI and Mid Ulster Council. We heard today from a range of businesses how this partnership is supporting their business to thrive in this region.
“So far, our Ambition to Grow Programme has offered over £1million to 31 businesses in Mid Ulster which is helping them to create over 100 jobs and grow their sales by £10.7 million in global markets which will have a positive impact on the local economy. Today’s launch of Council’s new phase of its Go Succeed programme will see our partnership continue to thrive and will enable us to support more businesses in Mid Ulster to achieve their ambitions to grow.”
To learn more about Go Succeed and how it can help Mid Ulster businesses, visit: https://www.midulstercouncil.org/gosucceed or email business@midulstercouncil.org
