Welcome to the Lancashire and Cumbria Homepage
Our region covers a huge area, from Carlisle in the north to Preston and Leyland in the south; from Accrington in the east to Blackpool in the west. We have about 7,800 members.
Click on 'Branches' above and call the branch secretary to check on current events. Branches depend on their members to come to events and suggest topics that they would like to hear about, so keep the ideas coming.
Your regional office is your first port of call if you need information. Phone Freephone 0800 083 3560 to speak to the Regional Office Administrator, Teresa Seed.
*** STOP PRESS - local events/opportunities ***
South Lakes branch will meet for its Annual General Meeting on 30 December 2008 at 7.30pm at the Golf Club, The Heights, Kendal, LA9 4PQ. All are welcome and there will be an opportunity for networking with fellow members.
Morecambe and Lancaster branch have an IT AND NETWORKING EVENT on 12th January 2009, 7.30pm at the Clarendon Hotel in Morecambe.
Carbon Trust delivers credit boost for small businesses
Small businesses struggling for credit during the credit crunch received a boost today as the Carbon Trust announced it has doubled the maximum size of its interest-free Energy Efficiency loans from £100,000 to £200,000 – and increased the overall loans pot by 45 per cent to £31 million this year.
The move is in response to the difficult market conditions and will enable small businesses to implement energy saving projects on a far more ambitious scale than previously possible. It is expected that the new scheme will generate 20 per cent more carbon and energy savings this year than would have been possible under the previous limit.
The loans, which are unsecured, interest-free and repayable over a period of up to four years, provide a cost effective way for small businesses to upgrade equipment with a more energy efficient version – thereby reducing energy bills and cutting their carbon footprint.
Loans are often offered on a partial basis, but the economic climate has made availability of alternative sources of financing more difficult. Large projects that can deliver the necessary carbon savings will now be eligible for loans that fund a greater proportion or total project cost.
It is expected that the larger loans will also lead to more applications from larger, more energy-intensive SMEs.
Hugh Jones, Solutions Director at the Carbon Trust, said: "We know that SMEs want to play their part in tackling climate change, and reduce their energy costs at the same time. But in the current economic climate, the tighter credit conditions are making it harder for small businesses to find alternative sources of funding.
"We know that some companies found that the £100,000 limit made it hard for them to finance the more ambitious projects they wanted to invest in, such as large lighting installations, boilers projects, or multiple equipment purchases such as variable speed drives with compressors and heat recovery equipment.
"£200,000 loans pave the way for companies to take on such projects and significantly reduce both their carbon emissions and their energy bills, which in turn will enable them to reduce operational costs and become more competitive."
Call 0800 085 2005 to find out more.
Go green without costing the earth
Lancashire businesses have the opportunity to save money and the planet by going green.
Lancashire County Council (LCC) has launched a new project that funds up to 50% of small scale renewable energy generation equipment. The project, run by LCC's economic development department Lancashire County Developments Limited (LCDL), will fund 50% of the cost and installation of the following equipment:
- Biomass boilers
- Ground and air-source heat pumps
- Solar electricity
- Solar powered water heating
- Small-scale hydro power
- Wind power.
The aim of the project is to help businesses save money on energy bills whilst cutting CO2 emissions and reducing reliance on fossil fuels. Participation in the project will also help businesses promote their green credentials to their clients.
Any SME business within Lancashire County Council's administration area can apply as long as they have carried an energy efficient audit. Lancashire Business Environment Association (LBEA) can carry out the audit for free.
County Councillor Niki Penney, chair of Lancashire County Developments Limited, said: "It is vital for us all to look at ways of saving energy and using the latest technology to supply clean reusable energy. We are encouraging businesses to purchase technology that cuts their costs whilst helping Lancashire achieve a cleaner environment."
For more information please contact LCDL on (01772) 536600 or visit http://www.lancashire.gov.uk/corporate/lcdl.
Directory and Email
Is your business in the FSB Online Directory? Don't miss out - go to the top of this page and click on SHOW, then click on 'update your details here'. You'll need your membership number and V code.
And while you're there, please consider giving us permission to contact you by email. We promise not to flood your In Box, and this is a very useful way of updating you on short notice events or scams.
