º£½ÇÊÓƵ

Small business owners have benefited from more than £500m in loans from a Government-backed scheme set up to help to fuel the growth of new businesses.

Since 2012 the British Business Bank has used its Start Up Loans programme to inject £500m into the º£½ÇÊÓƵ’s business sector, with more than 63,000 businesses getting support.

The cash has been distributed to a diverse range of business owners, with 37.8% being women while more than a quarter (27.8%) of the recipients were unemployed when they applied for the loan.

Though £100m of the loans went to companies in London, other regions have also benefited, with almost 8,000 companies in the North West sharing £59.6m, while firms in the South East got £49.6m, Yorkshire and the Humber companies shared £44.3m and the South West was allocated £40.8m.

Elsewhere firms there were loans to businesses in the West Midlands (£40.6m), East of England (£32.5m), the North East (£28.5m), Wales (£26.2m) and the East Midlands (£26m).

One business to benefit from the Start Up Loans scheme is Tyneside fim Seaweed & Co., which promotes the nutritional benefits of seaweed to food manufacturers.

The company, founded by marine biologist Craig Rose, now has its own brand of seaweed products sold under the brand Doctor Seaweed’s Weed & Wonderful. They are due to hit shelves in Sainsbury’s supermarkets this summer.

Mr Rose said: “Seaweed & Co. is going from strength to strength and, as a marine biologist, I am thrilled that the nutritional benefits of seaweed are becoming increasingly understood and applied through our range of products.