Supported Projects

Please select a project category to view more information:

Micro Enterprise

• + Indoor Animal Interaction Barn
  

  Ducky's Park Farm is a farm and animal based visitor attraction. The grant was to aid the development of a new indoor animal interaction barn to provide an under cover animal experience whatever the weather, this would enable the business to open throughout the year which will increase turnover and employment.

  Total Grant Awarded: £20,000 | Total Project Costs: £70,910

  Website: www.duckysparkfarm.co.uk

• + Casting Equipment and Production Finishing Machine
  

  Brian Fulton Jewellery both designs and produces fine jewellery using diamonds and fine gems. Previously the business sub contracted all its casting of jewellery.  The grant was to help the development of a small casting unit which would enable the business to increase profitability and provide the opportunity to expand the services and product range.

  Total Grant Awarded: £6,330 | Total Project Costs: £15,828

  Website: www.freshjewellery.co.uk

• + Witherslack Hall Equestrian Centre
  

  Witherslack Hall Equestrian centre offers livery, riding lessons and riding holidays. This grant was to help increase the number of teaching hours available through building a new outdoor floodlit ménage.  The new facility will be useable twelve months of the year rather than seasonally and be multi-functional.  It will also encourage more livery business as this ensures evening exercise is possible in the winter months, it is also a key instrument in allowing the Riding Club to operate throughout the year.

  Total Grant Awarded: £18,251 | Total Project Costs: £45,628

  Website: www.whec.co.uk

• + Thermafleece Brand Expansion and Market Penetration
  

  Second Nature is a micro enterprise creating insulation products from wool. This grant was to enable the company to follow a marketing strategy increasing awareness and penetration within their core market for Thermafleece sheep’s wool insulation and extend the Thermafleece brand into a broader range of products. 

  Total Grant Awarded: £7,975 | Total Project Costs: £15,950

  Website: www.thermafleece.com

• + Aerofix Refit

  Aerofix provide paragliding service and repairs to the public. The grant was to aid the purchase of three pieces of equipment that will enable more accurate and faster assessment of a paragliders airworthiness.  The new equipment would reduce staff costs, through time efficiency, and improve testing standards.

  Total Grant Awarded: £1,795 | Total Project Costs: £4,487

  Website: www.aerofix.com

• + Gluten Free Kitchen
  

  Country Fare is a family business, based on a working farm in the Mallerstang Valley, producing a range of hand made cakes and biscuits using local ingredients. The grant was to help the business expand into a new range of gluten free cakes and gluten free products. The costs included developing a gluten free kitchen, and creating a staff area and storage area.

  Total Grant Awarded: £2,865 | Total Project Costs: £7,163

  Website: www.country-fare.co.uk

• + Sarah Jane Nielson Showroom

  Sarah Jane Nielsen runs an interior design company creating bespoke interiors for homes and commercial premises. The grant was to help expand the  business from a home business to a dedicated showroom/office space. This would aid the planned growth of the business including employing new staff and allowing the business to be more visible.

  Total Grant Awarded: £9,436 | Total Project Costs: £26,422

  Website: sarahjanenielsen.co.uk/

• + Pure Lakes Production & Business Expansion
  

  Pure Lakes produce hand made, eco friendly toiletries & skin care products sold wholesale, direct retail and bulk to businesses for bottle refill. The grant was to facilitate an expansion into a larger premises, that would provide the space and environment to employ additional staff, a website to process web orders, develop marketing campaigns,  producing labelling and commercial mixing and blending machines.

  Total Grant Awarded: £8,010 | Total Project Costs: £16,020

  Website: www.purelakes.co.uk

• + The Little Big Food Co. Project
  

  Country Puddings Ltd is a successful farm diversification making homemade puddings from traditional recipes. The project arose from an opportunity to supply steamed puddings to all Waitrose stores and export to Japan. This was a new area of production requiring different production methods and specialist equipment. The grant was to assist with the acquisition of depositors, mixer, heat sealer, and cooling racks.

  Total Grant Awarded: £19,934 | Total Project Costs: £39,868

  Website: www.countrypuddings.co.uk 

• + Millom Network Centre
  

  Millom Network Centre objectives are to support the development of a sustainable local economy in Millom and the surrounding areas, maintaining charitable status. Activities undertaken include improving employment opportunities through support for new start and existing businesses, and the provision of education programmes for the local community. In order to use the conference facilities more effectively the centre wanted to install a kitchen to provide catering, the grant was to assist with the purchase of capital equipment.

  Total Grant Awarded: £23,750.50 | Total Project Costs: £47,501

  Website: www.millomnetworkcentre.co.uk

• + Paul Chuter Agricultural Services Ltd
  

  Paul Chuter is an agricultural engineering business servicing farm equipment. This project was needed to facilitate the improvement through investment. The grant was to assist with the purchase of specialist equipment for servicing and maintaining quad bikes, together with training for two members of the business to become qualified as quad bike training facilitators. 

  Total Grant Awarded: £6,930.4 | Total Project Costs: £17,326

  Website: www.paulchuter.co.uk

• + Display and Processing Equipment for P Hutchinson Butcher

  Peter Hutchinson is a meat producer/retailer business in Ulverston which previously used equipment on loan and nearing the end of its productive life. The grant was to enable the installation of a new chiller unit for the retail area, at greater energy efficiency, and purchase a sausage machine adding value to meat off cuts. The new equipment would enable the business to continue to develop its sales of locally produced meat.

  Total Grant Awarded: £3,598 | Total Project Costs: £8,995

• + Firefrost Ltd
  

  Firefrost designs and makes handmade jewellery using Murano Glass beads ,Sterling Silver and  Crystals. The grant was to aid the creation of an efficiently designed work space to allow expansion from a home based business. This additional space would also allow for the business to employ its first member of staff to support the company’s expansion. 

  Total Grant Awarded: £3,023 | Total Project Costs: £6,047

  Website: www.firefrostdesigns.co.uk 

• + Ulverston Brewery
  

  Ulverston Brewery is an established brewery producing beers for both local and national festivals, pubs and retail.  The grant was to help the relocation and significantly expand an existing brewery to larger premises  in Ulverston town centre. This expansion would enable the brewery to  increase production of cask and bottled beers, allow brewery tours and a small sales area for Cumbrian beers and other Cumbrian produce. 

  Total Grant Awarded: £43,647 | Total Project Costs: £87,294

  Website: www.ulverstonbrewingcompany.co.uk

• + Mackenzie Douglas ltd - Engineering Expansion
  

  Mackenzie Douglas Ltd is a highly specialized recruitment company for energy and legal professionals. The grant was to help develop a new engineering division thus enabling the targeting of a key growth sector in Cumbria and the UK. Costs included office equipment, marketing and training for staff.

  Total Grant Awarded: £4,647 | Total Project Costs: £11,114

  Website: www.mckenziedouglas.co.uk

• + Paul Chuter Agricultural Services Ltd (Phase 2)
  

  Paul Chuter is an agricultural engineering business servicing farm equipment.  The applicant had already successfully applied for RDPE funding for Phase 1 which strengthened the core business and started the process of expansion with the introduction of quad bike instruction. This grant was to assist with the development of specialist on road quad trekking/touring holidays, setting up of an online shop allowing the business to sell quad parts and accessories to a much wider national market, and the installation of a professional accounting system and the training in its use.

  Total Grant Awarded: £6,330 | Total Project Costs: £14,834

  Website: www.paulchuter.co.uk

• + Cumbrian Way Food
  

  Cumbrian Way Food produces frozen meals prepared in their kitchen by chef Jason, using locally sourced produce. This grant was to enable the business to expand and develop to further meet the demand that has been created within the local, regional and national market. The expansion will increase sales through marketing, PR, an informative Website and the recruitment of a sales person. The result of the expansion would be recruiting another chef, increasing the production and storage capacity of cooked food, and provide a distribution outlet for the food in Langdale.

  Total Grant Awarded: £48,754| Total Project Costs: £97,509

  Website: www.cumbrianwayfood.co.uk

• + A-HA! Marketing

  A-Ha! Marketing has a core current business in tourism literature distribution, this involves the provision of display units in a range of outlets where the public can pick up information on things to see and do in the area. The grant was to help the business expand through the development of a new core strand in the form of a travelling road show that creates a themed spectacle and showcases the region as a visitor destination. 

  Total Grant Awarded: £9,997 | Total Project Costs: £9,997

  Website: www.ahamarketing.co.uk

• + Flower and Garden School
  

  Myrtle and Mace is a small garden retail business in south Cumbria. The grant was to help the business develop through offering practical one-day workshops, demonstrations and talks on a variety of subjects to do with gardening and flowers. With more people turning to 'growing their own' to become more self-sufficient and growing organically, courses would be tailored for the current demand. 

  Total Grant Awarded: £19,593 | Total Project Costs: £39,374

  Website: www.myrtleandmace.com

• + Moss Precision Engineering Machine Tool

  Moss Precision Engineering are a small business specialising in producing special purpose manufacture. The business development was to cut operation cycle times extending productivity, profit margins and supplying customers with competitively priced precision products. The grant was to assist with this business development through the purchase of a  Vertical Machining Centre. 

  Total Grant Awarded: £5,000 | Total Project Costs: £12,500

• + AS Design
  

  AS Design is a small design and printing business, wishing to develop to offer more in-house services and outsourcing less work. The grant was to assist in the purchase of a Digital Printer to offer full colour digital printing, vehicle wrapping and full colour signs.  The equipment will help the business to continue to diversify away from the family farm, which is sadly no longer working.

  Total Grant Awarded: £4,800 | Total Project Costs: £12,000

  Website: www.asdesigncumbria.com

  

• + CREA Distribution Hub Research
  

  The Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency Limited assists people who want to become self-employed and any business needing advice or training. The grant was to assist with research to establish and assess the future viability of a distribution hub at the Redhills Food Technology Centre for onward transportation of food and drink from producers. The proposed distribution hub will operate on a professional commercial basis including single drop offs/collections and invoicing to ensure cost effective distribution to retailers and hotels which would not otherwise be able to access good quality local produce. 

  Total Grant Awarded: £19,500 | Total Project Costs: £19,500

  Website: www.crea.co.uk

  A Food Hub for Cumbria - Feasibility study for CREA

• + Lakeland Carbons Bagging

  Lakeland Carbons Ltd have been producing high quality abrasive grit for the last nineteen years and are one of only three grit manufacturers in the UK operating in this specialist end of the market. The business wanted to develop further through installing a new bagging plant and a new extraction and drying system; the RDPE grant was to assist with this capital investment.

  Total Grant Awarded: £35,500 | Total Project Costs: £88,750

  Website: www.lakelandcarbons.co.uk

• + David Johnson Agricultural Services
  

  David Johnson Agricultural Engineers has been in business since 1981 providing a range of engineering services primarily to farmers from Hobkinground near Broughton in Furness. A key part of the service is the fitting, repair and servicing of hydraulic hoses, which is carried out using hand tools. However due to the increase in intricacy and complexity (plus value) of the equipment they are having to work on, more specialised equipment is needed to maintain the market share. The resulting hose pressure, which can be generated through hydraulic systems, has also increased making hand crimping no longer an option. The grant was to assist the business in investing in a hydraulic swaging machine and a desk top computer.

  Total Grant Awarded: £2,341.60 | Total Project Costs: £5,854

  Website: www.djagri.co.uk/

• + Camp Road Garage

  Camp Road Garage is based in Flookburgh (near the airfield) and they have been trading for eight years providing skilled servicing of cars and light vehicles (class 3) as well as MOT testing. In addition they are one of the few locations that provide diesel fuel through an independent outlet. As a result of increased competition for the large national companies the garage has decided to invest in the development of another MOT bay specifically for the use of Class 1 (motor bicycles + motor bicycles + sidecar) and Class V11 (goods vehicles over +3 tonne) due to the large number of sole traders operating such larger vehicles and small ltd companies in the area. Although the MOT tests are fixed prices the business can still generate extra income from subsequent repairs from MOT failures on both motor bikes and goods vehicles. The grant was to assist with this business development capital costs.

  Total Grant Awarded: £18,386.80 | Total Project Costs: £45,967

• + Friendly Food and Drink
  

  Friendly Food and Drink are a small company producing hand-made chutneys, preserves, coulis and sauces. The business wanted to develop a new range of products. The grant was to assist with the purchase of a compact filling machine that can fill jars/bottle without the need for a large compressor and a handheld capping machine which would provides relief from blisters, fatigue and potential damage associated with the hands and wrists. The new Range   of ‘Cumbrian Delights’ products will include Cumberland Sauce, Sticky Toffee Sauce, Damson Jam and Farm House Chutney 

  Total Grant Awarded: £3,912 | Total Project Costs: £9,780

  Website: www.friendlyfoodanddrink.co.uk

• + Interactive Wallpaper Workshop and Expansion
  

  Interactive Wallpaper is a design studio and business that produces ranges of unique wall covering products. The unique selling point of Interactive Wallpaper is the facility for designs to be constructed insitu and for a client to engage with the design process. The grant was to help the business expand, and develop a sustainable and growing business.  Developments included creating a workshop space, creating a new website with e-commerce facilities and equipment to use for delivering print courses.

  Total Grant Awarded: £8,971.50 | Total Project Costs: £17,943

  Website: www.interactivewallpaper.co.uk

• + West Lakes Adventure
  

  West Lakes Adventure is a new start up business which will provide outdoor adventure activities to tourists, visitors and local residents. The business will primarily operate in West Cumbria, where at present there is no local provider offering this range of activities. Activities available will include mountain walking, expeditions, mountain biking, climbing, canoeing, scrambling and ghylling. The grant was to assist the purchase of necessary capital equipment and marketing required to set up the new business. 

  Total Grant Awarded: £14,406.99 | Total Project Costs: £28,813.98

  Website: www.westlakesadventure.co.uk

• + Grange Bakery
  

  Grange Bakery is a retail and wholesale craft bakery and is the only organically licensed craft bakery in Cumbria. The grant was awarded towards the cost of equipment - a bread making plant and a four rack proving cabinet. The new equipment should give the business greater capacity in the summer and thus enable a greater ‘summer’ profit to be made to allow the business to break out of the current cycle. The increased capacity can be achieved without the need for more staff and this again will contribute to improved profitability.

  Total Grant Awarded: £4,453 | Total Project Costs: £22,265

  Website: www.grangebakery.co.uk

• + Thermatech Heating Systems
  

  Thermatech Ltd is a specialist plumbing & heating engineering company that operates from Penrith offering high-tech solutions for heating, hot water, heat recovery and cooling, specialising in Geothermal, Solar and Biomass installations. The business wanted to invest in new equipment and training  to allow the business to become accredited in the Micro-generation Certification Scheme (MCS), thus improving skills and turnover. The grant was to assist with both the training and purchase of capital equipment.

  Total Grant Awarded: £4,928.29 | Total Project Costs: £11,815.86

  Website: www.thermatechltd.co.uk

• + Old School Gallery - Art Class Canopy

  Preston Patrick Primary School was built by public subscription from 1775 to serve the local farming community, but unfortunately the school eventually closed in 1949. The building has undergone extensive restoration and opened as a Gallery and Tearoom in 2009. The gallery also hosts art classes and these have expanded year round, but in order to continue classes during inclement weather the business required a small permanent canopy to be constructed and installed over the original entrance. The grant was to assist in the purchase of canopy and ground work.

  Total Grant Awarded: £3,109.05 | Total Project Costs: £7,772.63

  Website: www.oldschoolgallery.co.uk

• + Bridge Bistro - Business Expansion
  

  Bridge Bistro are a small enterprise consisting of different sectors including a café and bistro , manufacture of food products and a thriving outside catering business. From the small facilities, food is produced all day  for the table menu as well outside catering events plus daily for several local sandwich contracts.

  Due to increase demand the current site does not have the infrastructure or space to allow the business to take on additional covers, food contracts or  outside catering events.  A unit at Greenodd was identified as having the necessary floor space, infrastructure and communication links to enable to business to grow. This unit will house a large kitchen/food production area, small office and storage space;  this second business space a  hub for the three divisions away from the cafe and bistro. The grant was to support the purchase of kitchen equipment for this new unit.

  Total Grant Awarded: £7,291.6 | Total Project Costs: £18,229

  Website: www.thebridgecafebistro.co.uk

• + Furness Fish - Game out there
  

  A family business started by the owner Les Salisbury who has been fishing for shrimps etc since he was a lad, going out on the horse and cart. The processing activity of shrimp, fish and game takes place in our modern factory in Flookburgh, which also processes game in our fully licensed and HACCAP compliant facilities. The business is now owed and managed by Clare Worrall, Les’s daughter-in-law. The business has been supplying our produce via mail order for nearly 10 years now and with each passing year we go from strength to strength and the selection we offer keeps growing. The range includes the Classic traditionally prepared Morecambe Bay Potted Shrimps, and a stuffed Poultry and Game Range. This project was to introduce a new packaging machinery that will produce more environmentally friendly retail product, increases sales linked and generate jobs. This is especially relevant as Furness Fish’s largest single customer Booths has insisted on a move away from polystyrene packaging currently used to more environmentally (and user friendly) packaging.  The grant was to assist with the purchase of this machinery.

  Total Grant Awarded: £15,193.60 | Total Project Costs: £37,984

  Website: www.morecambebayshrimps.com

• + Fell Brewery
  

  Fell Brewery is a start up (craft) brewery based in Flookburgh (Lower Holker Parish) being set up by two young entrepreneurs (one soon to be a Master of Brewing and Distilling). Craft brewed beers are completely different from the beers produced by existing microbreweries in Cumbria as they are focused on serving the traditional “real ale” market following traditional recipes and styles. The grant was to support the set up of the business including equipment and marketing.

  Total grant amount: £ 15,173.50 | Total project cost: £ 30,347

  Website: http://www.fellbrewery.co.uk/

• + Foretract Engineering

  Foretract Engineering Ltd, (based in Greystoke) delivers an emergency specialist engineering service in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Far East.  It specialises in broken engine stud head removal for the marine and power generation industries and other on-site services are provided. Customers range from small businesses to market leading companies such as Maersk, Stena and Irish Ferries. The grant was to support new workshop areas and equipment purchase to help develop the business.

  Total grant amount: £34,895.67| Total project cost: £69,791.34

  Website: http://www.foretract.com/

• + Hardknott Brewery – Expansion for Export
  

  Established six years ago as an interesting add-on to the then pub (The Woolpack in Eskdale), it is now two years since Hardknott Brewery became a dedicated microbrewery in Millom. The grant was to support an investment which will provide additional brewing capacity and a semi-automated bottling line, which will allow the brewery to offer a wider range of brews in both the more traditional cask market and in the rapidly developing, younger market for stronger, specialist craft beers.  In addition the bottling line will facilitate further development of bottled conditioned beers.

  Total grant amount: £ 33,712| Total project cost: £84,280

  Website: http://www.hardknott.com/

• + Beech Tree Farm – Apple Juice
  

  Beech Tree Farm, produces delicious apple juices from organically managed orchard in the heart of the Eden Valley. As a family business they are passionate about caring for the land in a responsible way. The 45 acres of former pasture have been converted to organic  status and planted with over 1500 apple trees, including many local varieties, including Discovery, Chivers Delight, Spartan, Red devil and Egrement Russet.  After harvesting the apples in the autumn, the fruit is pressed to produce a clear juice which is then pasteurised and bottled here on the farm. Dry, medium and sweet varieties of apple juice are available during the season. The project was to develop the business to produce smaller bottle apple juice and large quantity 'bag in a box' supplied apple juice.

  Total grant amount: £ 6,979.20| Total project cost: £17,448

  Website: http://edensbounty.wordpress.com/beech-tree-farm-apple-juice-and-eating-apples-from-the-eden-valley/

• + Kirkby Stephen Business Park Expansion
  

  K-S Business Park Ltd is an independent Ltd company owned by a farm partnership, S & A Ewbank. Set up in 2007, there are currently 7 units all of which are occupied.  The business plan is to continue to develop units as and when demand exists. The grant ais was to assist the extension of the existing infrastructure of the Kirkby Stephen Business Park and for the construction of a new purpose built Veterinary Centre for a waiting tenant.

  Total grant amount: £ 6,979.20| Total project cost: £17,448

  Website: http://www.kirkbystephenbusinesspark.co.uk/

• + Beckside Construction – Wetting Up

  Beckside Construction has developed a number of specialisms including working on areas with high conservation interest such as raised peat bogs and the construction of hydro electric schemes.. The mosses are remnant areas of larger raised peat bogs, which require work to protect the peat from drying out by the removal of the trees and the formation of peat bunds to enhance the retention of water to enable the formation of new peat by sphagnum moss. The mosses are designated Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and require very low ground pressure equipment to protect the surface vegetation and allow safe working on the very soft peat surface. The work is highly specialised with Beckside Construction having gained experience of working on the peat with the clearance of trees from two large moss sites. Grant support to enable the work with the purchase of specialist equipment is required in the form of a wide tracked excavator with tilt rotator and bunded fuel bowser.

  Total grant amount: £29,220 | Total project cost: £73,050

• + Dalesway Tyres
  

  Dalesway Tyres was established in 2001, the nature of the business then was primarily carrying our Hydraulic Repairs on Agricultural Vehicles/Machinery. A Puncture Repair and Tyre Supply/Fitting service was also available together with a Mobile Tyre Service. Dalesway would like to continue with the Mobile Service as it is an essential facility that is convenient to the farming community but being mobile also has its negatives. It’s meant they have never been able to offer the FULL tyre package. The new location will enable a full and comprehensive service to the farming community and offer a wider range of services. The grant support was to help set uo the new workshop base.

  Total grant amount: £13,412.56 | Total project cost: £41,914.24

  Website: http://www.daleswaytyres.co.uk/

• + Silver Yard

  Silver Yard was a start up café/deli selling high quality/premium local and regional products to visitors and local people, based in Orton. Silver Yard is a detached building, set within a large plot, located in the centre of Orton Village Conservation Area. It occupies a prominent position, on the main Tebay-Appleby road. The premises were previously used as a retail showroom until 2007 and since then the premises has been vacant, but is in a generally good state of repair. The property was constructed in 1988 as three craft/industrial unit, covering 200 m2 (2000 sq. ft). The 40 seater café will focus on providing meals and snacks using fresh, local and seasonal produce, mostly sourced within 20 miles, purchased direct from the producers. The grant was to support the equipment and marketing required to start the business.

  Total grant amount: £37,500 | Total project cost: £62,500

• + Country Fare
  

  Country Fare was set up in 1998 making cake and biscuits as a farm diversification, a ‘factory’ has grown organically since and the business now supplies 77 lines. The business was looking at developing the processing to become more efficent though greater mechanisation. The grant was to aid the purchase of a range of machinery to enable the business to increase production, profitability, whilst retaining current workforce. 

  Total grant amount: £8,168.80 | Total project cost: £20,422

  Website: http://country-fare.co.uk/

• + Stringers Brewery
  

  Since 2008, Stringers have created a microbrewery that produces a range of traditional cask and modern craft beers, powered by 100% renewable electricity.  With most of the initial business coming from traditional cask products, increasingly growth is driven by bottle sales, reflecting growing consumer and customer interest in craft beers, particularly amongst younger beer drinkers and including women. The grant support was for expansion of the existing brewing/conditioning capacity.

  Total grant amount: £15,000 | Total project cost: £30,000

  Website: http://stringersbeer.co.uk/

• + Ennerdale Brewery
  

  Tucked away in one of the most unspoilt valleys of the Lake District, Ennerdale Brewery produces a range of fine cask ales, brewed using traditional methods but with recipes which appeal to modern tastes. Brewed with spring water from Keltland Fell, whole-leaf hops, freshly milled barley and live yeast the Real Ales from Ennerdale have a clean, crisp taste and a dry, more-ish finish. The brewery is situated directly on the Coast to Coast (C2C) walking route and although it is sited in a picturesque and unspoilt setting, is only a short distance from the commercial centre of Whitehaven and the arterial road network. The grant support was for business development to increase production.

  Total grant amount: £21,800 | Total project cost: £54,500

  Website: www.ennerdalebrewery.co.uk

• + Waters and Acland Furniture School
  

  Waters and Acland Furniture in its first five years of trading has become increasingly recognised as one of the UK’s leading workshops, creating fine contemporary fine furniture. Building on the established reputation of the Waters and Acland Furniture Workshop the project involves the development of the existing site and upgrading of the workshop space to create a highly specified Furniture School including a dedicated student bench room. The grant support was to equip the workshop with the additional equipment and alterations to the website to allow online booking.

  Total grant amount: £11,088.77| Total project cost: £27,721.93

  Website: www.watersandacland.co.uk/