Extension of Recovery Loan Scheme

At the Autumn Budget 2021 the Chancellor announced that the Recovery Loan Scheme will be extended by six months to 30 June 2022.

Launched in April the scheme provides financial support to businesses across the UK as they recover and grow following the coronavirus pandemic.

You can apply to the scheme if Covid-19 has affected your business. You can use the finance for any legitimate business purpose – including managing cashflow, investment and growth. However, you must be able to afford to take out additional debt finance for these purposes.

From 1 January 2022, the following changes will come into force:

  • The scheme will only be open to small and medium sized enterprises (turnover <£45m)
  • The maximum amount of finance available will be £2 million per business (maximum amount per Group limited to £6m)
  • The guarantee coverage that the government will provide to lenders will be reduced to 70%

Different lenders will have different lead times for processing applications, and it may not be the case that applications made before 31 December will be subject to the current terms. Applicants should check with their preferred lender

For more information visit the website: Recovery Loan Scheme – British Business Bank (british-business-bank.co.uk)

NEW Alert Level System In Place

NEW Alert Level System In Place

As part of the continuous review cycle we have decided to adopt a new approach to Covid19 and we will be implementing this with effect from Monday 18th October 2021. From this date we will operate on two alert levels: Medium and High, to ensure that processes are simple and easy to follow. These are briefly described below and comparisons can be seen in the table. Full details of the approach / levels can be found in the guidance HERE. Please ensure you circulate this to your staff on site so they are aware of the impact when the alert level changes.

Change of self-isolation rules in England

The link below provides a summary which,  from 16 August 2021,  applies to anyone who has been pinged or contact traced as having come into contact with someone who has tested positive for Covid-19:

Details of the summary can be found here…

Telford Innovation Centre tenants win Queen’s Award for Enterprise

 

Congratulations to our tenants – Scanning Pens on winning this prestigious award – well done!

Created in 2003 by Oxford Brookes graduates Jack S. Churchill (CEO) and Toby Sutton (COO), Scanning Pens is a dedicated EdTech company supplying text-to-speech devices to people with dyslexia, as well as raising awareness of dyslexia worldwide and supporting people whose daily lives are impacted by literacy differences.
Scanning Pens devices represent a huge quality-of-life change for neurodiverse people, and work by allowing users to scan through and listen to texts via an audio feedback system. Removing the need for in-person readers and modified texts, they make reading an independent act, and help people who struggle with reading able to engage with texts in the same way that a neurotypical person might. From working through a history exam or reading the latest bestsellers to the day-to-day admin tasks of running a business, their devices are designed to make reading accessible and simple, so that users can focus on what matters.
As a business, Scanning Pens have dedicated the past twelve months to supporting young people and adults with dyslexia and literacy differences who have been so affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. As well as offering free trials of their technology to schools, they now offer the same scheme to parents to try before they buy. Scanning Pens are fortunate and proud that the company has remained open for business and has continued expanding into territories such as the US, Australia and Canada as well as developing new markets in other countries all over the globe.
The Queen’s Award is appointed for sustained achievement by UK businesses in the categories of Innovation, International Trade, Sustainable Development, and Promoting Business via Social Mobility. Now in its 55th year, the programme is considered one of the highest awards for business in the country. Scanning Pens, too, are no stranger to the prestigious recognition of international business growth: in March 2021 the Department of International Trade recognised their outstanding international sales and named them Export Champions for the third year running. As a company they proactively reach out and encourage other businesses to become exporters. Socially distant living has created uncertain times in education that Scanning Pens continues to support people through.
The recognition of a dedicated assistive technology business by an office as prestigious as the Queen’s Awards for Enterprise is a statement on the growing worldwide commitment to accessibility. It also promotes a powerful message on how vital it is to consider inclusivity during a time when business and education are engaged in a rapid process of change and adapting to a very different set of global norms.
Find out more about Scanning Pen here……

“To be recognised by the Queen’s Awards for Enterprise is the highest honour in business. We’re thrilled that our dedication to literacy and reading accessibility has been acknowledged in such a way that celebrates the commitment of everybody here at Scanning Pens.”

— Jack Churchill, CEO & Co-Founder