Would-be entrepreneurs will soon be able to take advantage of a multi-million pound programme designed to equip them with the skills to set up their own business.

The £8.6m cross-Channel Increase Valorisation Sociale (Increase VS) project will use European funding to deliver free workshops aimed at kick-starting small businesses and creating new job opportunities.

The programme is being led by the Optivo housing association, which operates across the south east, with local sponsorship from other social landlords, including West Kent Housing Association.

The workshops, which are planned for areas including Thanet, Tunbridge Wells, Sittingbourne and Medway, will be delivered by the PopUp Business School (PUBS).

West Kent Housing Association's integration manager, Keeley Atkinson, said: "We have seen the results PUBS has achieved in Medway, Maidstone, Tovil, Swanley and Ramsgate, and we want to help Optivo provide similar opportunities to even more residents.

“The sessions are practical, fun and designed to get people excited about opportunities rather than worried about red tape.

"The message is you don’t need to get bogged down in business plans and bank loans - you just need a good idea and the determination to make it work.”

The Increase VS project aims to create up to 1,200 new businesses and help 2,000 more people into work over a three-year programme, operating on both sides of the Channel in areas that have above-average levels of unemployment.

It is being co-funded by the Interreg France (Channel) England programme with a European Regional Development Fund budget of £5.9m.

For details of the courses visit the PopUp Business School website.