Following the release of the Government’s Industrial Strategy in June, the Manufacturing Commission is undertaking a new inquiry to scrutinise the Strategy and make recommendations to help the Government deliver on its aims. 

Scoping for this inquiry identified access to finance as a particular challenge for manufacturing SMEs. Funding for start-ups is typically available from the Government’s innovation agency, Innovate UK, and later-stage businesses with established revenue streams can usually attract equity investment from the private sector. This has led to a funding gap, often termed the ‘valley of death’, which affects manufacturing SMEs acutely.

The aim of this evidence session is to understand the challenges that manufacturing businesses face associated with access to finance and develop policy solutions to address these challenges.