The Heart of the South West Local Enterprise Partnership is backing a bid to win a share of a £15m fund to boost economic growth and innovation in rural areas.

The bid, prepared by Devon County Council, aims to secure funding from Defra’s pilot Rural Growth Network initiative. If it is successful, it could be eligible for a second injection of cash from a much larger fund of £60m.

The plans propose the creation of rural enterprise hubs to promote business start ups, supporting existing businesses and traders to enhance the rural economy and create more jobs. The hubs will provide access to high quality office facilities including reliable broadband and IT services.

Tim Jones, Chair of the Heart of the South West LEP said: “We are very pleased to be backing these proposals to be part of the national pilot. This is a vital area of growth for us; whilst we have several strong urban centres, the South West is predominantly rural and we have to manage a cohesive and inclusive approach to enable growth across the whole patch.

“We have developed very strong credentials in this area, and we are determined to remove the barriers to business growth in the countryside. We want to ensure that we can enable greater capacity, flexible working conditions and reliable infrastructure to boost productivity and  create more  opportunity for employment.

“These proposals are the result of a mutual effort to ensure that we can deliver a combined programme of initiatives that meet the needs of our communities and deliver real results for Devon and Somerset. “

Developing the area’s capacity for research and development is also key to the plans, with the research coordinated through the area’s two agricultural research institutes. The bid focuses on potential research areas such as Anaerobic Digestion, improving productivity in food and drink sectors, biodiversity and agricultural improvements.

There are also plans to encourage more women into rural enterprise and developing sustainable start ups.

More information is available on the website www.heartofswlep.co.uk
      
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