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£10 million fund for women entrepreneurs

Jun 25 2008

Ł10 million fund has been established for aspirational female entreprenuers

A £10 million fund has been established which will finance loans, training and mentoring for aspiring female entrepreneurs.

Networking community Enterprising Women is offering its members the chance to apply loans of up to £30,000 from the fund, which has been set up in partnership with Lloyds TSB with the aim of helping women make the most of their business ideas.

Bev Hurley, chief executive officer of the company behind Enterprising Women, remarks that women often take a more cautious approach towards risk and debt than men. Another challenge faced by both male and female entrepreneurs is formulating a realistic business plan, she adds.

Hurley says: 'Many entrepreneurs ... still don't robustly test and validate their business plan against ... commercial reality. Lack of knowledge about the challenges, costs and timescales of getting customer revenues can lead to struggling and unsustainable businesses.’

The UK government-backed Women's Business Development Agency says that encouraging women to found their own firms is 'vitally important' for the economy.

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