The UK is full of talented entrepreneurs who can help solve some of the world’s biggest challenges. In this Female Founders Forum blog, we cover new research from The Entrepreneurs Network which makes the case for expanding access to entrepreneurship education, alongside highlights from our Members and provide updated guidance on the government’s support schemes.
Female Founder Highlights
Here is a quick wrap up of this week’s news highlights, featuring some of our inspiring Members:
Google for Startups is welcoming two new cohorts of Black and Women founders across Europe and Israel who are driving change in their industries. The Founders will have access to the best of Google’s people, products and connections. This is a great initiative, supported by our Member and head of Google for Startups UK, Marta Krupinska. You can read more about the programme here.
In our latest blog, we covered all of the highlights and insights from our Access to Finance session with expert speakers, Julia Elliott Brown, Alexandra Daly, Juliet Rogan and Baroness Kramer. You can read more about the session here.
New research from The Entrepreneurs Network has revealed that there is an untapped opportunity to promote economic growth and reduce unemployment by expanding access to entrepreneurship education to secondary school students. Earlier interventions can help girls to develop traits that are key to entrepreneurial success later in life, such as creativity, persistence, and communication. You can read the full report here.
Government Support
Chancellor announces new package of support for businesses
The Chancellor has announced a new Job Support Scheme, starting in November to replace the previous 'Furlough Scheme'. The Government will top up the wages workers covering up to two thirds of their hours for the next six months, with the Government contribution capped at £697.92 per month. There will also be an extension of self-employed grants on similar terms as the Job Support Scheme.
The 15% VAT rate cut to the tourism and hospitality sector has been extended until 31 March 2021 and firms who deferred their VAT bill will no longer need to pay the lump sum in March. They will have the option of splitting it into smaller, interest fee payments over the course of 11 months.
The application deadline for all coronavirus loan schemes has been extended to the 30th November. Firms will also be offered greater flexibility to repay the Bounce Back Loans.
Lastly, the CBILS Government guarantee will be extended up to ten years, and a new replacement loan guarantee programme will be announced in January. For more, read TEN's policy update.
New Guidance: Venues required to record contact information
Venues and premises across the UK will need to record contact details of their customers, visitors and staff according to new guidance from the Department of Health and Social Care. Details must be stored for 21 days and shared with NHS Test and Trace, if requested, and fixed penalties will apply for businesses that don’t comply. You can read the new guidance here.
New Guidance: COVID-19 testing guidance for employers
The government has published new guidance to help employers who want to introduce their own internal testing programmes, outside of the NHS Test and Trace service. This guidance will help employers to ensure that their testing programmes are reliable and effective. You can read the new guidance here.
Barclays Support and Opportunities
Female Founders Forum 2020 Digital Events
In our next session on Thursday 8 October, 2020 from 10 am - 11:30 am, Tugce Bulut, founder of Streetbees and Member of the Female Founders Form will be joining our expert panel to discuss Attracting & Retaining Talent. You can sign up for the event here.
As we mentioned in the last Newsletter, we will be running a series of events over the coming months:
Building Personal & Operational Business Resilience webinar - 10 am - 11:30 am, Thursday 5 November 2020 - sign up here
Cementing Your Story webinar - 10 am - 11:30 am, Tuesday 4 December 2020 - sign up here
In each webinar, we will be joined by an eminent high growth Female Founders Forum member, an expert speaker, and hear insights from Juliet Rogan, Head of Barclays HG&E team.
If you are interested in attending a specific webinar, please contact jess@tenentrepreneurs.org and we will add you to the invitation list.
Launch of Barclays’ first ‘Investing in Women Code’ commitment
Barclays is taking action to close the entrepreneurship gender gap, through a series of measures designed to boost the resources and financial support available to female founders. The first in a series of three-year commitments, launched on 26 August, will see the next generation of female founders supported through the bank’s LifeSkills programme, helping them turn their plans into action. Hannah Bernard, Head of Barclays Business Banking, explains how the bank is backing women in business. You can read more about the launch of this first commitment here.
Eagle Labs Virtual Events
Barclays’ programme of virtual events covers a range of topics from cashflow management to building resilience to help entrepreneurs and start-ups navigate these uncertain times. Forthcoming events include a session on thinking differently about social media marketing and an event to demystify AI, machine learning, and machine intelligence. All events are free to attend and open to anyone. For more information visit the Eagle Lab event page.
Barclays Coronavirus Support Hub
The Barclays COVID-19 Support Hub provides the latest information, tools, and guidance to support businesses throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. This hub includes information about Barclays’ products, webinars, Facebook Live events, and more information on how to access government schemes. You can also download Barclays’ coronavirus checklist to support your business resilience planning throughout this period. There is also an updated FAQ section on this hub.
We want to inspire female entrepreneurs across the UK. Do you know any inspiring female entrepreneurs?
If so, please connect them directly to me at jess@tenentrepeneurs.org.