finance 27
£50m investment plan for Thames Valley Berkshire
Following consultation on an EU Structural & Investment Fund Investment Strategy (EU SIFS) for Thames Valley Berkshire, we submitted the final Strategy to government at the end of January, writes Tim Smith, business director for Thames Valley Berkshire Local Enterprise Partnership
With match funding, the Strategy represents a seven-year, £50 million investment plan for Thames Valley Berkshire. It focuses on the EU-prescribed thematic areas for the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF), as well as supporting the rural economy through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD). Its submission marks the 'end of the beginning' as we now wait for detailed guidance on what the Government and EU are calling "business processes".
To ensure economic growth within Thames Valley Berkshire, it is essential that we have a skilled workforce with the infrastructure to support it. A key role of the Strategy is to accelerate the delivery of programmes outlined in the draft Thames Valley Berkshire Strategic Economic Plan (SEP) through investment.
There are over 40,000 businesses in Thames Valley Berkshire and many are hungry for growth, yet
co-working space and provide better support to businesses and building vibrant business networks.
The Strategy therefore aims to support the growth of knowledge-intensive sectors with the development of nine hectares of land to create a Science Park in Thames Valley Berkshire; increase significantly the supply of people with STEM expertise; encourage greater innovation and entrepreneurialism, and support the rural economy by developing over 45 hectares of green infrastructure projects – to improve health and wellbeing, reduce flooding and enhance biodiversity.
The EU SIFS and the Thames Valley Berkshire SEP are entirely complementary, with the former providing a key mechanism for the implementation of the latter. Both tie together the two elements of the Thames Valley Berkshire City Deal. One of these elements, a Business Growth Hub, is a significant step forward for the LEP and we’re excited that we will shortly be in a position to announce more detail on this ‘one stop shop’ for business coaching, grants and way-finding.
Details:
info@thamesvalleyberkshire.co.uk www.thamesvalleyberkshire.co.uk
they face a wide range of challenges and market failures, such as lack of access to finance and investing appropriately in training for staff and business networks. The LEP is determined to remedy these issues by investing in incubator and
Business protection is the key
Is there a key person keeping your business afloat? Very few businesses give real consideration on the impact the removal of their, say, lead sales generator or chief technical person would have and the large number of scenarios where this could occur, writes Neil Henke, adviser, Beaufort Asset Management
There are effectively four types of protection which should be considered;
Key-man insurance – this will pay a lump sum to the company in the event of the ‘key person’ passing away or contracting a critical illness. A key man can be anyone who’s death or incapacity would seriously effect the profitability/future of the business but typically will be the business owner or one of the directors. The level of cover that is appropriate should take into consideration the loss of earnings, the cost and time of finding a suitable replacement and the length of time it will take the business to recover.
Partnership/director partnership – when a partner or director dies it is often important to ensure that the business equity held by the deceased is distributed in line with what is best for the business. In many cases this will mean ensuring the equity content is retained within the business as opposed to passing to the deceased’s spouse or other beneficiary. An effective way of ensuring this happens is to put
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – APRIL 2014
in place a partnership/shareholder protection plan with an underlying shareholder agreement. The life policy provides a lump sum payable to the surviving partners/directors which can be used to purchase the shares from the deceased estate, a cross over agreement ensures that this transaction is binding on both parties.
Business loan protection – the loss of a person who has guaranteed a loan to the company can also have a significant impact on the company. It is easy to set up a policy to pay out a lump sum either to the company or direct to the lender to assure against this.
Relevant life plan – this can be a very cost- effective way of providing life cover (not critical illness) for directors and business owners. The premiums are paid by the company and are an allowable business expense so can be offset against corporation tax. This makes the premium far more cost effective than paying it out of taxed income which is also liable to employer NI (a possible saving of over 54%). The lump sum benefit also is excluded from testing against
the lifetime allowance, unlike standard death In service schemes which can also be attractive to those sat on large pension pots.
For further information or a complimentary review of your business insurance contact Neil Henke.
Details: Neil Henke 0118-9879800
nhenke@beaufortasset.com www.beaufortasset.com
www.businessmag.co.uk
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