Flexible business loans to power growth across Coventry, Warwickshire, and the West Midlands.
Funding designed around real businesses
Three ways we can help
CWRT supports start-ups, growing SMEs, social enterprises and established businesses with accessible finance and a personal approach.
Warwickshire
For businesses that are finding it difficult to access finance through their local bank.
Coventry & Warwickshire
For established businesses investing in assets to support growth and create new jobs.
The Midlands & Beyond
For underserved businesses, including those excluded or declined by mainstream lenders.
Product 01
Ideal for Warwickshire based businesses that are finding it difficult to access finance through their local bank.
Enquire about LCEAre you looking to start or grow a business in Warwickshire? Do you need finance to make it happen?
The Local Communities and Enterprise Fund (LCE) has been created to support a wide range of SMEs, regardless of their current trading status.
The fund can support:
About the fund
The Local Communities and Enterprise Fund is a finance strand of the Warwickshire Investment Fund, a five year access to finance initiative from Warwickshire County Council.
The initiative is designed to support Warwickshire’s economic recovery and future growth.
Across the five-year period from 2021/22 to 2025/26, Warwickshire County Council planned to invest £60 million across two funding streams, creating new and additional finance options for businesses seeking to invest and grow within the county.
Further information is available through the Warwickshire Investment Fund
Is LCE right for you?
To be eligible:
Customer stories
Discover some of the businesses that have received support through the Local Communities and Enterprise Fund.
Expansion with LCE
Meet the businesses behind the Local Communities and Enterprise Fund.
The Smarter Outsource Service
Discover how LCE supported TSOS to create opportunity and grow.
The Local Communities and Enterprise Fund forms part of Warwickshire County Council’s Warwickshire Investment Fund.
Product 02
Ideal for established businesses in Coventry and Warwickshire that are investing in assets to support growth and create new jobs.
Enquire about DuplexInvestment made viable
The Duplex Investment Fund combines loan and grant funding to help make business investment projects financially viable.
The Duplex Investment Fund helps local businesses finance capital investment projects.
It combines public sector grant funding with a business loan, providing businesses with additional financial flexibility and helping them successfully move forward with their investment plans.
The value of the grant can be almost equivalent to the total interest payable on the loan.
The fund is delivered by FCA accredited lending specialists CWRT on behalf of:
Is Duplex Right For You?
Businesses receive a loan to cover the full cost of their capital investment project from the outset.
Once the business has purchased and paid for the eligible capital items, it can receive a grant of up to 40% of the total project cost.
This combination of loan and grant funding is designed to make investing in business growth more affordable.
Duplex success story
Caffeine Project used Duplex funding to refurbish a new space, expand its offer and create six new jobs — supported by a £24,000 grant on top of the loan.
Who qualifies
To qualify for the Duplex Investment Fund, your business must:
Working together
The Duplex Investment Fund is part-funded by:
Product 03
CWRT is accredited under the British Business Bank’s Community ENABLE Fund, (CEF), supporting underserved businesses across Coventry, Warwickshire and surrounding counties.
Enquire about CEFInclusive funding
The Community ENABLE Fund aims to:
Help social lenders and Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs) increase lending to smaller businesses by providing additional funding.
Increase access to finance for smaller businesses that have been excluded or declined by mainstream lenders.
Provide greater support to ethnic minority led and female led businesses.
Improve access to finance for smaller businesses operating in deprived areas.
Is CEF Right For You?
We support ambitious and driven entrepreneurs who are making a difference, including those who may have been excluded by mainstream lenders.
Eligibility and scheme details
To qualify, businesses need to demonstrate that they are financially stable and meet our lending criteria.
This includes meeting the requirements of the Growth Guarantee Scheme (GGS), which applies to loans funded through the Community ENABLE Fund.
The Growth Guarantee Scheme launched in July 2024 and is designed to improve access to finance for UK smaller businesses looking to invest and grow.
Facilities backed by the Growth Guarantee Scheme are provided at CWRT’s discretion.
All applicants are subject to CWRT’s standard credit and fraud checks.
Turnover Limit
The scheme is available to smaller businesses with a turnover of up to £45 million, calculated on a group basis where the business forms part of a wider group.
UK Based
The borrower must carry out trading activity in the UK.
For most businesses, more than 50% of income must come from trading activity.
Viability Test
CWRT must consider the applicant to have a viable business proposition.
Business in Difficulty
The borrower must not be considered a business in difficulty, including being subject to relevant insolvency proceedings.
Subsidy Limits
Applicants need to provide written confirmation that receiving a Growth Guarantee Scheme facility will not cause the business to exceed the maximum amount of subsidy it is permitted to receive.
Businesses receiving subsidies through publicly funded programmes should receive written confirmation detailing the level and type of assistance received.
The following organisations are not eligible:
At a Glance
Clear information to help you understand whether this fund may suit your business.
The applicable rate depends on the level of risk and security available.
The arrangement fee can be added to the loan and repaid over its term.
How the scheme works
The Growth Guarantee Scheme helps UK businesses access finance to invest and grow.
The maximum facility available under the wider scheme is generally £2 million per business group for borrowers outside the scope of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
For borrowers within the scope of the Northern Ireland Protocol, the maximum is generally £1 million per business group, or another amount as notified under the relevant scheme arrangements.
Minimum facility sizes depend on the type of finance being provided.
The Growth Guarantee Scheme can support:
Term loans and asset finance facilities can generally run from three months to six years.
Overdrafts, invoice finance and asset based lending facilities can generally run from three months to three years.
Businesses that previously received finance through schemes including:
However, previous borrowing through these schemes may affect the maximum amount available.
Pricing
CWRT’s interest rates and fees vary according to the individual lending proposal.
Pricing takes into account the benefit provided by the Government guarantee.
Personal Guarantees
CWRT may request personal guarantees in line with its normal commercial lending practices.
A borrower’s Principal Private Residence cannot be taken as security under the scheme.
Government Guarantee
The scheme provides CWRT with a 70% government-backed guarantee against the outstanding facility balance after CWRT has completed its normal recovery processes.
The guarantee is provided to CWRT as the lender.
The borrower remains 100% responsible for repaying the debt.
Growth Guarantee Scheme-backed facilities remain at CWRT’s discretion and applicants are subject to our usual credit and fraud checks.
Subsidy
Support provided through the Growth Guarantee Scheme is considered a subsidy.
Limits apply to the amount of subsidy a borrower and its wider group can receive over a rolling three-year period.
Previous subsidies received by a business may therefore affect the amount it is eligible to borrow.
About the fund
The Local Communities and Enterprise Fund is a finance strand of the Warwickshire Investment Fund, a five-year access-to-finance initiative from Warwickshire County Council.
The initiative is designed to support Warwickshire’s economic recovery and future growth.
Across the five-year period from 2021/22 to 2025/26, Warwickshire County Council planned to invest £60 million across two funding streams, creating new and additional finance options for businesses seeking to invest and grow within the county.
Further information is available through the Warwickshire Investment Fund
Take the next step
Start your application online in just a few minutes.
Our team is available to guide you throughout the process.
Alternatively, get in touch with our experienced team to discuss your funding options.
At CWRT, we believe business lending should be supportive rather than stressful.
Our funding approach is built around flexibility, fair assessments and transparent terms, with a dedicated team available to guide you throughout the process.
.
Whether you need additional working capital to purchase stock or a larger investment to support expansion, our business funding is designed around your circumstances and ambitions.
We provide accessible finance for start-ups, sole traders and established SMEs, helping businesses secure an appropriate level of funding to achieve their goals.
Every business has different financial circumstances and cash-flow requirements.
We work with you to develop a repayment plan that reflects your business and its cash flow.
Our aim is to make borrowing affordable and sustainable so you can concentrate on running and growing your business.
Your business is more than a credit score.
Rather than relying solely on automated lending decisions, our loan officers consider the wider picture.
We look at factors including your:
We believe business lending should be honest and straightforward.
We provide clear information about our interest rates and explain the full cost of borrowing upfront, helping businesses understand their commitments and budget with confidence.
How the scheme works
The British Business Bank’s Business Guidance resources provide additional information and support for businesses.
Resources include guidance on areas such as:
Important information
The Community ENABLE Funding Programme and Growth Guarantee Scheme are managed by the British Business Bank on behalf of the Secretary of State for Business and Trade.
British Business Bank plc is a development bank wholly owned by HM Government.
It is not authorised or regulated by the PRA or FCA.
Let’s talk about your plans
Our experienced team can help you understand the options available.
