More than 10,000 small business leaders across the UK have enrolled on the Help to Grow: Management Course to provide them with the knowledge and confidence to boost their business performance, according to official figures.
The 90% government-funded programme was launched in April 2021 to help business leaders and senior managers to increase resilience, innovation, and growth within their organisations. It comprises 12 modules which have been updated multiple times since launch to ensure they continue to address the changing challenges that SME leaders face. The course includes 10 hours of 1-2-1 business mentoring, peer learning, and access to a dedicated alumni network for ongoing support and development.
Across the UK as a whole, 10,635 business leaders have enrolled on the Help to Grow: Management Course as of the 30th September 2024. Of these, two in five (38%) identified as female and 14% are from an ethnic minority background compared to 18% and 6% in the wider business population.
The latest independent evaluation carried out by Ipsos** has shown that nine in ten UK programme completers (91%) reported improved leadership and management skills after completing the Help to Grow: Management Course, and the same percentage felt that they had an increased awareness of factors that drive business productivity and growth. To date 74% have reported that the programme increased their business’ resilience to external economic factors and 62% have reported increased sales.
The study also points to the benefits of collaboration and networking with the majority feeling better supported to make decisions about their business (82%) and feeling less isolated in their role as a business leader (72%).
Leo Hopley, owner of Rustic Kitchen, a family business based in Worcestershire, was the first person to enrol on the course, in April 2021. He said: “I didn’t have much business experience at all when I partnered with my dad to run Rustic Kitchen, the catering side of Hopley Farm, so I jumped at the opportunity when I saw the 90% government-funded Help to Grow: Management Course. We’ve grown over the years but what I learned on the course allowed us to professionalise. It gave me a grounding in the fundamentals of running a business, helped me to understand business frameworks that I could use to manage Rustic Kitchen and showed me how to structure the business for future growth. When making decisions, we still go back to the mission, vision and values three years later.
“Having 10 hours of 1-2-1 mentoring as part of the course was really beneficial for me. I learned a lot from my mentor. She helped me drill down into the financial management module and to identify which activities were profitable and we now focus on smaller, more profitable events. I think there's something to be gained no matter what point you are at in your business career. In fact, our operations manager has just started the Help to Grow: Management Course and she has many years of hospitality experience.”
Flora Hamilton, executive director at Small Business Charter, added: “Hitting the milestone of having 10,000 people complete the Help to Grow: Management Course from across every part of the UK demonstrates the value business leaders are getting from the programme.
Through our network of Small Business Charter accredited business schools, we’re empowering small- and medium-sized companies to become more successful by developing more sustainable, innovative and resilient businesses.
“Leo from Rustic Kitchen is a great example of a business leader who’s benefited from the course. Like many leaders in a family business, Leo had no formal business training when he took on responsibility for Rustic Kitchen. With the support of the expert team at Aston Business School and his Help to Grow: Management mentor, he was able to put in place the vision, mission and values, a new organisational structure to enable smart decision-making, and get a solid understanding of how to make his business more profitable.”
Business leaders can find out more about the Help to Grow: Management Course and sign up for the course in their area here.
* Help to Grow: Management: enrolments and completions November 2024
** Evaluation of Help to Grow: Management end of year 3 evaluation report
About Help to Grow: Management:
Help to Grow: Management is a 12-week course designed to support business leaders and their senior managers to increase resilience, innovation, and growth within their organisations.
Developed and delivered by the network of Small Business Charter accredited business schools, the course is available in more than 60 locations across the UK and is 90% government funded. It is designed to fit around existing work and personal commitments, providing business leaders with more than 50 hours of online and in person training including 10 hours of one-to-one mentoring. Individuals completing the course automatically join the Alumni Network, where they have access to exclusive events, content and partner offers, as well as the support of a UK-wide peer network.
The Small Business Charter (SBC) empowers small business success through its network of expert business schools. Developed 10 years ago by Lord Young, the previous Department for Business, and the Chartered Association of Business Schools, the SBC was established to signpost entrepreneurs, small businesses, and local economic stakeholders to business schools in their region with the expertise to help them thrive.
There are 68 SBC accredited business school centres of excellence across the UK which are trusted partners of local stakeholders and the national government to deliver effective leadership and productivity programmes and small business support to drive economic growth.