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Learning Journey Support for SMEs

A new Grant Scheme has launched to support businesses connected to the Digital Tech, Tourism and Food and Drink sectors overcome the financial barriers associated with attending trade shows. The aim is to enable these businesses to begin or progress their ‘learning journey’, supporting business resilience, business growth and export readiness through attending relevant trade fairs, exhibitions, or conferences.

A fund has been made available to provide grants of £500 to businesses seeking to attend UK-based events or £1,000 to those seeking to attend shows overseas. The funding can be used to support travel, accommodation, event tickets, or as a contribution to costs attributed to exhibiting at the event. This scheme has been funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

Before applying, please read the Application Guidance in full. If you have any questions, please contact the project team by emailing BusinessSupport@aberdeencity.gov.uk.

How to apply

Before applying, please read the Application Guidance in full. If you have any questions, please contact the project team by emailing BusinessSupport@aberdeencity.gov.uk. 

The link to download an application form is available below. Once complete, please email the form and all supporting documents (see checklist in the Guidance and FAQs below) to BusinessSupport@aberdeencity.gov.uk.

The link to download an application form is available below. Once complete, please email the form and all supporting documents (see checklist in the Guidance and FAQs below) to BusinessSupport@aberdeencity.gov.uk. 
 

Applications will be accepted until 28 February 2025 or until such time as funding has been fully allocated.

Guidance185.8 KB
Application form753.71 KB

 

Assessment of applications

All complete applications received will be assessed and verified against the eligibility criteria by Aberdeen City Council. Incomplete applications may not be reviewed.

Successful applicants will be informed by offer letter. All decisions will be made at the discretion of Aberdeen City Council and are subject to the availability of funds.

The applicant may appeal an unsuccessful application up to 4 weeks after notification, by submitting a written request to appeal to BusinessSupport@aberdeencity.gov.uk. The application will then be reviewed by a second member of staff at Aberdeen City Council.

Contact

If you have any questions about the application form, guidance or eligibility, please contact BusinessSupport@aberdeencity.gov.uk.

Data Privacy Notice

For more information on our data privacy notice please click here  

FAQs section: 

Businesses attending UK-based events can apply for £500 grant.

If attending international events, businesses can apply for £1000 grant.  

  • Sole Trader, Partnerships or Limited Companies. 

  • The business must be operating within the Digital Tech, Tourism, or Food and Drink sectors – excluding illegal businesses or those that may bring the Council into disrepute. UKSPF guidance also restricts payments for activities of a party political or exclusively religious nature. 

  • The business (or individual where sole trader) must be based/live within the Aberdeen City Council boundary area. 

  • The business must be trading as a micro, small or medium enterprise (up to 250 employees). 

  • UK residents and those granted ‘leave to remain’ in the UK are eligible to apply for support. 

  • Only one application per business will be accepted over the duration of the Scheme (however the award may be used to support multiple employees to attend). 

Ineligible businesses:

  • We are unable to award any grant payment to any organisation where the business owner/director within the business has been disqualified as a director or business owner.

  • We are unable to award any grant payment where the business owner/director within the business that has been on the AIB Register of Insolvencies.

  • We are unable to award any grant payment to any organisation where the business owner/director has debts outstanding to Aberdeen City Council. 

  • Completed application form. 

  • Evidence of Registration – for limited companies, Companies House registration number or, for sole traders, attach a copy of your HMRC UTR letter. 

 

Digital Tech

  • Techscaler overseas visits/learning journeys to USA, Singapore and China – rolling programme with dates from Sept through to March 2025

  • Young Company Finance Conference 20th September

  • A3 conference 18th and 19th September

  • Global Reg Tech summit, 24 September New York

  • AI & Big Data Conference, scheduled for October 1-2, 2024 (Netherlands)

  • Sifted Summit - 2-3 October, London 

  • ADIPEC 4-7 November, Abu Dhabi, (world’s largest energy exhibition with a Digitalisation & Technology Conference)

  • Web Summit  from November 11 to 14, 2024, in Lisbon, Portugal 

 

Tourism

  • Scottish Agritourism Conference, 18-19 November 2024.

  • North-East Tourism Conference, 19 November 2024.

  • Arival Activate, 23-25 November 2024.

  • Scottish Tourism Month 2025: The Signature Conference, 11 March 2025. 

  • Scottish Golf Tourism Week, 18-20 March 2025. 

 

Food and Drink

  • Restaurant & Takeaway Innovation Expo, 15 October 2024.

  • The Future Of Scotland’s Food Sector, 24 September 2024.

  • Food & Drink: Pathways For Growth, 13 September 2024. 

ABZ Seed Fund

In partnership with Business Gateway, ABZWorks offers support to eligible individuals through business start-up grants. You will find more information on the groups ABZWorks support at https://abzworks.co.uk/employability-support/

For more information on eligibility, please email abzworks@aberdeencity.gov.uk.

Business Start-Up Grant Scheme

This fund supports start-up businesses by offering a grant of £1,000 to business start-ups or £3,000 to business start-ups taking on a premise or commercial space within Aberdeen city.

Sole traders, Partnerships or Limited Companies who have set up within Aberdeen City Council boundary since 1 January 2024 can apply, with one grant per business permitted. Business applicants must be engaged with the Business Gateway service. 

Further information is available at https://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/services/services-business/business-start-grant-scheme 

Union Street Empty Shops Grant Scheme

This fund supports new or potential tenants of ground floor vacant units on Union Street to undertake internal renovation project works to enable reoccupation in line with the Union Street Empty Shops Action Plan.

Further information is available at https://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/services/services-business/empty-shops-grant-scheme  

Any grants awarded through the Learning Support Journey for SMEs Grant Scheme will be awarded as Minimal Financial Assistance under Article 36 of the Subsidy Control Act 2022.

The Application Form Declaration, and for successful applicants, Grant Award Letter, outline conditions and terms of the grant award in detail. 

The grant must be used for intended outlined business purposes otherwise the Council has the right to reclaim the grant. Any decision to award a grant will be at the discretion of Aberdeen City Council. 

 

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