A project by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has been heralded as a big success, according to four new reports.
The DTI’s Phoenix Fund has provided £177 million for enterprises located in some of the UK’s most disadvantaged areas.
Launched in 1999, the DTI claim the fund has created significant new resources of help for local businesses, demonstrating the potential of enterprise as an escape from social exclusion.
The four independent studies released ahead of UK Enterprise Week, focus on the differing sections of the fund, the Phoenix Development Fund, City Growth, Community Development Finance Institutions and the Development Fund for Rural Renewal.
Nigel Griffiths, small business and enterprise minister, said: “The Phoenix Fund has been a great success. It has put entrepreneurship on the agenda of groups and communities for whom it had not previously been an option.
“When the fund was launched in 1999, its remit was extremely challenging – it has met the challenge. The priority now is to ensure the good practices developed are adopted by mainstream providers.”
The Phoenix Development Fund in particular has helped fund 96 demonstrator projects, designed to test new and innovative ways of working with under represented neighbourhoods.
Money from the Development Fund for Rural Renewal was used to support businesses affected by the foot in mouth crisis, in some cases increasing turnover and employment levels.
Enterprise Week, between 15 and 21 November, is a government backed initiative to promote entrepreneurship, particularly among young people. Events up and down the country will be backed by a coalition of businesses, charities, education bodies and government departments.
