Firms across Kent and Medway can now apply for interest-free loans of up to £500,000 to help the county's economic recovery.

Kent County Council is offering a total of £8million to help small and medium-sized firms develop new lines and services, invest in machinery and premises and create more jobs.

The Kent and Medway Business Fund will offer loans of between £100,000 to £500,000.

Funding for the loans comes from the repayment of previous KCC loans under a similar scheme started in 2017.

Roger Gough, leader of the authority, said: "Kent has a higher number of small businesses compared to the national average so we have really wanted to focus on supporting the county’s SMEs.

“Since 2012, when we first started offering repayable finance through regional growth funding, KCC has supported several hundred small businesses in Kent and Medway through these funds. This has helped create or safeguard more than 5,000 jobs.

“As Kent navigates its journey of economic recovery, we continue to do everything we can to help businesses to grow.”

Derek Murphy, KCC cabinet member for economic development, added: “For nearly a decade our loan initiatives have helped a range of businesses.

“Recycling the funding as the loans are re-paid is a fantastically simple, but effective way, of ensuring continued public support for Kent’s hard-working business community as everyone recovers from the widely-felt impacts of the pandemic.

“We want to support as many small businesses as possible with ambition and good ideas, who are looking for a helping hand to get to the next level, to apply.”

For details of the scheme, click here.

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