GOL Black and Minority Ethnic Business Support Seminar
In March the London Enterprise Team based in the Government Office for London hosted a Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Business Support Seminar.
The purpose of the seminar was to consider the barriers which prevent BME communities engaging with mainstream support to set up and expand businesses.
Representatives attended from various interest groups ranging from the Small Business Services, UK Trade and Investment, Kensington and Chelsea Borough Council, to the Ethnic Minority Business Forum and the BME Business Federation Partnership.
The seminar raised key issues with existing support services and outlined proposals for addressing these issues.
Some of the key concerns were:
- How to identify funding streams and support services available;
- Lack of support available for growth and sustainability for existing BME businesses;
- The failure of BME Businesses to achieve successful bids for contracts due to unproven track records and lack of experience.
The group identified key areas for development and outlined short-term objectives to move forward tackling some of these issues.
These included:
- A mapping exercise to outline all the major funding streams and business support organisations;
- Providing clarity on who is eligible for these services, and which business support organisations deliver them;
- A proposed pilot for a 'one stop shop' where BME businesses could come for initial guidance and find out what support is available to them. Initially this pilot will focus on a particular area within London.
The group aims to meet again after three months to assess progress.
