Most NI loans were made to men with 974 successful applications

Start Up Loans, part of the British Business Bank, announces that its Northern Ireland programme has facilitated over 1,539 loans totalling £13,329,445.

Most Northern Ireland loans were made to men with 974 successful applications leading to investment of over £8.5million while 564 loans were made to females totalling more than £4.7million.

The most popular age range for Start Up Loans in Northern Ireland was 31-49 with 798 loans made totalling over £7.5million.

The latest figures show in 2021/22 148 loans were made totalling over £1.7million while for the rest of 2022 and into 2023, £1.3million has been shared across 111 loans.

One entrepreneur who benefitted from a Start Up Loan was Tiarnan McKeown who realised an ambition last September when he opened his own business in Moira, County Down.

Glume is a bread and pastry shop which provides a range of specialty sourdough bread and French style pastries, with an emphasis on freshness, quality and seasonality.

Tiarnan used the investment from Start Up Loans to buy kitchen equipment which enabled him to open his business.

He said: “I had been accumulating some equipment on my own but the Start Up Loan really helped me get what I needed to open the business. It’s been a lot of hard work to get to this point but when you are working hard for yourself it feels a lot more satisfying.”

Tiarnan had no hesitation in recommending the Start Up Loans programme to other entrepreneurs thinking about realising their own business ambitions.

He added: “It can sometimes be hard for start-ups to get access to finance so Start Up Loans is very helpful.

“The business mentoring you receive as part of the programme is also very beneficial. My skills are as an artisan baker so to have someone mentor me in things like business forecasting has been invaluable.”

Start Up Loans, part of the British Business Bank, announces that its programme has facilitated over 100,000 loans worth more than £941 million to businesses throughout the UK. The figure marks a significant milestone for the programme since its creation in 2012.

Richard Bearman, managing director, Start Up Loans, explained: “Start Up Loans is instrumental in supporting people across the UK who are looking to start their own businesses, and passing our one hundred thousand loan milestone is an amazing achievement 10 years in the making. We could not have achieved this without the dedicated support of our Delivery Partners, UK network or in-house team and I’d like to take this chance to thank them for everything they do to make our work possible.”

Small Business Minister Kevin Hollinrake, added: “It’s great that 1,539 of businesses across Northern Ireland have had the support of a Government-backed Start Up Loan.

“Thanks to these loans, and the advice and guidance they come with, over 100,000 firms across Britain now have a brighter future.

“This government will always stand with small businesses in Northern Ireland and across the UK.”

This announcement follows the recent news that Start Up Loans has become an official partner of the StartUp Award Series 2023, as well as the launch of the British Business Bank’s Guide to Business Resilience, a guide created in response to the economic challenges faced by small businesses in 2023.