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Growing Business Fund Grant Panel Interim Meeting Minutes (Unconfirmed)
Wednesday, 24 November 2021 | 10.00am - 12.30pm
Held via conference call on Microsoft Teams
Present – Panel
Mike Burrows (MB)
Martin Ince (MI)
Daryl Griffiths (DG)
Dr Sumathi Sundram (SS)
In attendance
Allen Hall (AH)
Neil Sargent (NS)
Beverly Davies (BD)
Julie West (JW)
Jason Middleton (JM)
Rose Joy (RJ)
Chair
Martin Ince Communications
Burnett, Barker Solicitors
S&V Consultants Limited
Finance East
Finance East
Suffolk County Council
New Anglia LEP
New Anglia LEP
New Anglia LEP
1
Welcome and Introductions
MB welcomed members. Meeting quorate.
2
Not present on telecon call
Apologies received:
Chris Daspher, New Anglia LEP; Paul Stewart, Center Parcs; Kathy Atkinson, Kettle Foods Limited;
Jackie Potter, Micropress Limited; Dominic Keen, Britbots; Amanda Castell, Finance East
3
Declarations of Interest and GDPR
None declared.
4
Meeting Minutes: Panel Meeting held on Wednesday, 03 November 2021
Meeting notes approved with minor amendment.
NS confirmed that a Growth Hub Adviser had visited DXB Pump & Power Limited to offer advice and
support on Net Zero as per the Recommendation.
5
New Applications for Approval (1)
(1) New Form Construction Limited - Agreed to support
Local Authority of business - South Norfolk District Council
£120,000 - GBER
Six new full-time jobs to be created
NS provided background information to the grant application. The Panel noted the proposed
purchase of new machinery will enable the business to meet growing demand and business growth.
Observation was made on the ‘Medium Risk’ assessment. General discussion took place, but the
Panel felt that this is sector related and the risks managed.
Reservation was expressed on the timescale for this application, bearing in mind the approaching
GBF claim deadline. NS reassured the Panel that the business would be able to achieve the
timescales in the application.
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Recommendation: NS to seek written confirmation from the business that they are going to be able
to complete, and aim to claim, before the end of January 2022.
A strong project and a good fit for the GBF scheme.
The grant application meets Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) requirements.
Small Grant Scheme (SGS) | Growth Through Innovation Fund (GTIF) Updates
No update given as data is produced on a monthly basis and will be reported at the next GBF Panel
meeting.
7
Funding, Updates and Jobs Creation
No update given.
BD reported that SCC may struggle in getting all the GBF paperwork completed before the Christmas
break due to staff workloads.
Action: BD/JW to liaise to ensure BD can manage staff workloads effectively.
8
GBF Applications ‘Pipeline’
Finance East have eight potential applications at various stages and are hopeful of two applications
being brought to the Wednesday, 01 December 2021 GBF Panel meeting.
JW reported that there is £820k left in the pot, with approx. £1m of grant applications currently in
discussion, which will use up all the remaining GBF budget. The Panel noted that applications will
need to have ‘immediate spend’ and will be dealt with be on a ‘first come, first served’ basis.
Additional GBF Panel meeting: An additional GBF Panel meeting will be held on Wednesday,
15 December 2021. Finance East are hopeful of six applications being brought to the meeting. The
meeting to start at 09.30am to allow additional time to review the six applications being presented.
9
PR and Marketing
No update given.
10
Any Other Business
None.
The meeting closed at 10.52am.
Meeting to be held via Microsoft Teams
Wednesday, 01 December 2021 | 10.00am - 12.30pm
