Wiltshire Council increases funding for over-subscribed Invest in Wiltshire grants

Wiltshire Council has received 55 applications totalling £4.2m for its Invest in Wiltshire grant scheme, which closed for applications last month.

The grants, which are funded by the government's UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) and Rural Prosperity Fund, will be used by businesses to improve productivity by buying new equipment, machinery or digital infrastructure, and improve premises and creating workspaces. All applications needed to show how they would create new jobs or more skilled jobs, while also helping the business to reduce its carbon footprint.

The total funding applied for is more than three times the amount of funding available; originally the Invest in Wiltshire fund was £1.35m, but due to the high demand the council increased the available funding to £1.83m.

Cllr Richard Clewer, Cabinet Member for Economic Development and Leader of Wiltshire Council, said: Invest in Wiltshire has been a huge success, with 55 applications for grant funding.

Unfortunately, the fund has been heavily over-subscribed, and the amount applied for greatly exceeds the funding that has been awarded to us by the government, and so some businesses will miss out, but we've done all we can to support Wiltshire businesses by increasing the pot to £1.83m.

We are now assessing applications to establish which bids best meet the criteria, and we will let all applicants know whether they have been successful or not in the coming months. A grants panel will take the final decisions based on recommendations following assessment.

It is of course disappointing that we can't help all the businesses that have applied, but we are signposting them to alternative funding opportunities. The success of Invest in Wiltshire shows just what an appetite there is for businesses to grow and flourish in our county, and we will be using this to lobby for more money from government in the future.

We have committed to having a thriving economy in our Business Plan, and £1.83m in Invest in Wiltshire grants will give businesses in our county the more opportunities for long-term success.

To find out more about Invest in Wiltshire, people should go to: