A project that has helped thousands of businesses across Leicester and Leicestershire improve their online presence has had a £5 million funding extension to allow it to keep running for another three years.
The Digital Growth Programme has already invested more than £3 million since its 2016 launch, supporting 1,044 Leicestershire businesses with more than 23,000 hours of free help.
It has also delivered 240 action-planning workshops and 48 awareness-raising seminars about a host of digital subjects to small and medium sized businesses, and provided financial support for things such as e-commerce, electronic marketing and social media.
The project is funded by the European Regional Development Fund, Leicestershire County Council and East Midlands Chamber.
In all the chamber will have contributed £626,981 and Leicestershire County Council £170,000 to the programme over its six year lifespan.
The £3 million invested so far has helped unlock an additional £2.25 million of private sector investment from the SMEs which received support.
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Between now and March 2022, a further £5 million will go into the programme, to help a further 2,000 businesses with bespoke digital advice, and deliver 200 more workshops and 48 more seminars.
It will offer support from expert local digital professionals across 20 new digital themes:
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– Cloud computing and cyber resilience
– E-commerce
– International e-commerce and marketing
– Email marketing, CRM and Big Data
– Mobile marketing and productivity
– Online marketing
– Paid digital advertising
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– Social media
– Video production and marketing
– Website planning and development
Coun Trevor Pendleton, cabinet support member for Leicestershire County Council, said: “We remain committed to making Leicestershire a great place for opportunities and business growth, which is why we are delighted to continue our support for the Digital Growth Programme.
“More than 1,000 local businesses have already received a huge amount of support to help them realise their objectives and embrace the opportunities that digital resources can bring.
“The next phase of the programme will ensure that even more business can access this vital support.”
Diane Beresford, the chamber’s deputy chief executive, said: “The response to the Digital Growth Programme so far has been fantastic, so we’re really pleased to be working alongside our funding and delivery partners to increase our investment in this crucial business support initiative.
“From trading online to adopting technology to streamline processes and increase productivity, the digital agenda is something that businesses of all sizes can no longer afford to ignore.
“The Digital Growth Programme is all about helping more local businesses to harness digital technology to unlock their full potential.”
Businesses can find out more about the Digital Growth Programme