SWEFEnterprise Fund

We support young people with business costs that they would otherwise be unable to afford and that will help the business make a transformational change or take a significant step forward in its development. The fund offers Start-up Grants of up to £500 and Business Grants of up to £2,000. This is not a loan scheme and recipients do not need to pay the grant back.

Business plans are not required, all we ask is that applicants complete the application form as fully as possible.

We need a reference to support your application. Your referee should not be a spouse/partner, parent or guardian. It should be someone who knows your business and your skills. It might be a tutor, a previous employer or a support worker or mentor.

• Anyone aged 18 to 30 and living in the county of Dorset
• Anyone facing financial challenges preventing them from developing their business
• Anyone launching or running a new business that has been trading for under two-and-a-half years
• Anyone who has a business bank account or are setting one up (grants are only paid into business bank accounts)
• If a limited company, you must hold at least 50 per cent of shares. A business partner aged over 30 may not hold more than 20 per cent

• Start-up grants are for businesses that are not yet trading (looking to start within three months of application) or are within a month or two of starting to trade – monthly revenue is usually under £500
• You can apply for up to £500
• If successful, you can apply for a business grant at a later stage (a minimum of six months later), when your business has shown progression
• Grants must be spent within one month of receipt of funds
• Applications solely for ‘business ideas’ will not be considered – we support young people who have taken significant steps to get a business off the ground (for example, doing market research or pro-bono work, developing social media followers, investing money into early business costs)

• Equipment that will help achieve increased profit
• Materials or stock
• Prototypes and product development
• Building a website or booking system
• Training
• Other business costs that will make a significant impact
• Ideally, any goods or services to be purchased using the grant should be sourced from UK businesses

• Salary or living costs e.g. rent or utilities
• Debt repayment
• Funds to reimburse items that have already been purchased
• New computers, phones, tablets (we can consider second-hand or refurbished versions)
• App development or software development costs – apps/software should be ready to launch or already launched at the point of applying to SWEF (we can consider wireframes)
• Invasive beauty treatment such as Botox, aesthetics, semi-permanent make-up, facial tattoos, dermal fillers
• Property development
• Involvement with gambling, drugs, tobacco or vaping
• Political or religious  lobbying
• Illegal or unregulated activity (such as cryptocurrencies)

• Business grants are for sole traders/limited companies/CICs limited by shares, that have been trading less than two-and-a-half  years
• You must have a business bank account
• Your business should be generating £500 in monthly revenue, otherwise we may consider the application as a Start-Up Grant application
• The business should be your sole work focus, or you can illustrate a clear and obvious path towards it being your sole work focus.
• You can apply for up to £2,000
• Grants must be spent within one month of receipt of funds

• You must wait a minimum of six months before applying for a Business grant
• The business should be your sole work focus when you apply
• If you were age 29 or 30 when awarded a Start-Up Grant, you are still eligible to apply for a Business Grant up to your 32nd birthday

• The business is your sole, full time work focus, or will become so shortly.
• The grant will be used to transform the business and take it to the next stage
• You have specific plans for how you will spend the grant, such as web links and costs for the items requested
• The grant will help the business make a transformational change or take a significant step forward in its development
  
  Please note:
• Applications that involve ‘match funding’ or the purchase of second hand items are particularly welcome
• If you are asking for a contribution towards a single item that costs more than maximum grant, the cost of the item cannot be more that £10,000 and you must be able to fund the balance
• Applicants will receive a single business grant only, which may not be at the maximum amount – you cannot re-apply

• Equipment that will help achieve increased profit
• Prototypes and new product development
• Building a website or booking system
• Training
• Other business costs that will make a significant impact
• Ideally, any goods or services to be purchased using the grant should be sourced from UK businesses

• Salary or living costs e.g. rent or utilities
• Debt repayment
• Funds to reimburse items that have already been purchased
• Ongoing software subscriptions
• Stock, materials or other ongoing costs for existing product lines
• New computers, phones, tablets (we can consider second-hand or refurbished versions)
• App development or software development costs – apps/software should be ready to launch or already launched at the point of applying to SWEF (we can consider wireframes)
• Invasive beauty treatment such as Botox, aesthetics, semi-permanent makeup, facial tattoos, dermal fillers
• Property development
• Involvement with gambling, drugs, tobacco or vaping
• Political or religious  lobbying
• Illegal or unregulated activity (such as cryptocurrencies)

Register with our application portal to access the Start-Up application form. You can save your work and resume the form by going to Funding Programmes. You should upload a recent bank statement (no more than three months old) from your business bank account if you have one.

Please ask your referee to download a reference via the button below and send the completed form by email to bursary@dorsetcf.org.

• We will confirm receipt of your application within five working days
• We aim to contact you within two weeks to let you know if your application is moving to the next stage
• If successful, you will be invited to an online meeting. We will email you to arrange a date and time
• We aim to inform you of a final decision within one week of your online meeting
• If you are successful, the grant will be paid by bank transfer
• If you are successful, you will be asked to sign up to SWEF monthly newsletters, to take part in SWEF network events with other successful grant recipients, and to join a closed SWEF Facebook group
• We will ask you for feedback and updates six months after the grant is awarded, and again at 12 months

These organisations could help with developing your business idea and preparing a business plan, as well as provide ongoing business development support.

SAMEE Charity

Supports people with disabilities and health conditions into self-employment.

Dorset Growth Hub

Supports businesses across Dorset.

Dorset business mentors

Affordable business mentoring.

Starfish Enterprise Co-working Hub

Support and community for businesses in Weymouth.