BUSINESSES BENEFIT FROM £2M FUNDING TO BOOST ECONOMIC GROWTH IN SURREY
An economic boost worth millions, scores of new jobs and hundreds of local job opportunities will be delivered thanks to funding awarded to dozens of businesses by Surrey County Council.
From vineyards and biotech to manufacturing and AI firms, a diverse range of organisations from all four corners of the county have been awarded grants in the first round of the Surrey Economic Growth Fund.
The scheme, which is made up of a range of pooled funding streams including the government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund and Rural England Prosperity Fund, was launched by Surrey County Council in April.
Following a highly competitive process, close to £2 million has been awarded to dozens of recipients, unlocking significant match funding and private investment.
The successful bids are collectively estimated to grow Surrey’s economy by £9 million, create or safeguard 300 jobs and bring 1,350 residents into employment.
Among those receiving funding is Aero Sensor, a world-leading technology firm in Dunsfold Industrial Park in Cranleigh, led by a former F1 engineer Dr Barney Garrod.
The cutting-edge company is one of only three companies globally developing new aerodynamic measurement probes for automotive and aerospace applications.
The five-figure grant will support the creation of a new wind tunnel facility to test its designs, creating new highly skilled jobs in the process.
Dr Garrod said: “The grant enabled us to fully kit out the wind tunnel with tools and instruments we need. We’ll also be hiring new staff and technicians. I have over 20 years of experience in F1 and we’re going to take people on and train them up in a highly skilled job.
“Having our own wind tunnel means we can halve our turnaround time to develop our existing probes that will make them world leading. There are only three other companies in the world that make these things. Having that facility on site is going to massively accelerate our development time and allow us to develop more advanced probes. It’s moved the business forward by about a year.”
Other successful bids include Woodlark Nurseries in Hersham creating a new horticultural facility while Upper Birtley Farm Partnership near Bramley will establish a premium glamping and outdoor education site in the Surrey Hills.
And a Godalming business, Sammi-Select, will develop a new ‘practice interview’ tool adapted from an AI platform, to support marginalised jobseekers such as young people not in education or training and those who are digitally excluded.
There’s county-wide approaches funded too, with allocations for Surrey Venture Studio scheme to support start-ups, which is a collaboration between the county’s three universities, and Source in Surrey, led by the county’s Chambers of Commerce, to encourage larger businesses to ‘buy local’.
Both will offer benefits to many businesses across the county, complementing and enhancing existing support already ongoing through the council’s Business Surrey initiative.
Councillor Matt Furniss, Surrey County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways, Transport and Economic Growth, said: “The new Economic Growth Fund has generated a huge level of interest from across Surrey, demonstrating the real appetite from our amazing business community to drive innovation, growth and job creation in our county.
“Round one was a highly competitive process and we’ve maintained our commitment to only supporting the highest quality bids which fully met the criteria. This ensures every pound invested will deliver genuine growth, create meaningful jobs and produce positive outcomes for Surrey’s communities.
“Our ambition is to position Surrey – which already contributes £50 billion to UK plc every year – as one of the UK’s leading regional economies, and this fund is just one of the ways we’re building the foundations to achieve that.”
Round Two of the Surrey Economic Growth Fund is due to launch early next month (October), focusing on Business Growth Grants. Applicants can expect a streamlined, one-stage process supported by a guidance handbook.
