From noon today (September 1) small businesses, especially those involved in tourism, across Somerset can apply for the Growth Support Kickstart Grant Scheme offering FREE grants of up to £3,000.

Application forms for the grant are available on the Growth Support Kickstart Grant website on a first come, first served basis from noon.

It follows the recent government announcement of a £10 million national investment to kickstart the tourism economy and a £20 million national investment to support small business to get going again and recover from the impacts of COVID-19.

The Heart of the South West Local Enterprise Partnership (HotSW LEP) has been awarded a £771,164 share of the funding to help as many businesses as possible as they recover from the impacts of COVID-19.

Businesses across the Heart of the South West LEP area of Devon, Plymouth, Somerset and Torbay will be able to make a single application for a grant of between £1,000 and £3,000 to fund the purchase of:

Further Information and Guidance and FAQ are available on the Growth Support Kickstart Grant website. HERE: the Kickstart Grant website