Latest Info
Mentors Needed
Are you passionate about the creative industries?
Have you experience you could pass on to aspiring creative entrepreneurs?
We are looking for Creative Business Mentors to provide mentoring support to either or both CREATING ENTERPRISE Launchpad and CREATING ENTERPRISE Accelerate participants.
This role is about guidance and helping participants to develop their idea or business. It involves helping them to find and translate information, understand problems, identify solutions and implement action plans.
For further information, please click here or contact Lynne Dorman on (028) 90610826 or email l.dorman@workwest.co.uk
Business Support
The promotion of an enterprise culture has been at the forefront of Work West’s activities throughout its existence. Work West provides support for businesses in the following phases: pre-start, start-up and growth.
Work West has been providing enterprise support to the immediate community of West Belfast and across Belfast City and the Eastern Region since 1989. Work West have designed and implemented a number of training and development programmes. The programmes have been developed to meet the needs of a number of businesses.
Enterprise Development Programme
If you have always wanted to start a business, the Go for it Programme is the smart way to go about it, giving you the help you need. And the best of all, it's free! No matter what your background, level of skills, or experience Invest Northern Ireland's new Go for it programme is designed to provide you with a tailored solution to setting up you own successful business. All you need is the desire to Go for it!
The Go for it Programme has been designed to be more flexible and tailored to your specific needs, whether you are looking for ideas or are well into the planning stages of your new business. The new programme is solely dedicated to helping potential entrepreneurs think about, plan and launch their own businesses.
Key benefits include:
- Personalised approach including your own personal Business Advisor
- Training plan based on your own needs
- One to one advice
- Expanded initiatives for female entrepreneurs, minority communities and community enterprise
Support is delivered depending on how developed your business idea is. Your Business Advisor will help you determine where you are in the business pipeline. There are two key types of support:
- Early stage Entrepreneurs - people who are considering their own business but have yet to define their business ideas. Our programme helps you explore the options available and encourages you to develop ideas and move on to the Business Start-up programme.
- Business Start-up Programme - people with an advanced business idea which they would like to put into action. Go for it will direct appropriate resources, such as mentoring, to businesses that show the greatest export and innovation potential and/or are likely to deliver the greatest economic benefits through growth.
For more information contact Lynsey Cameron on (028) 90 610826 or email l.cameron@workwest.co.uk
Facing the challenges of business growth? Why go it alone?
The Growth Programme provided by Invest Northern Ireland, can help you develop your business by giving you access to experts in areas of business you are less experienced in. Targeted specialist support in those areas which could make all the difference to your competitiveness. And this support will cost you nothing!
If your business has the potential to increase production, workforce or sales and has reached VAT turnover, you could be eligible for this innovative programme.
Because no two businesses are alike, the Growth Programme is shaped around your specific requirements, skills and growth potential, with the appropriate resources and assistance directed where it will make the greatest difference. Just the support you need, when you need it. This Programme also has the flexibility to adapt along with your business's expansion.
Joining is as simple just call Work West on 028 90 610826. Before you know it, you will be assigned a personal Business Advisor and a meeting will be set up to discuss your needs and plans. At this initial meeting you will complete a short assessment with your advisor and develop your own Growth Action Plan.
Starting your own business through STEPS TO WORK
If you are currently unemployed and interested in starting your own business, then you may be eligible for Steps to Work. You must contact your Jobs and Benefits Office regarding your eligibility and to gain a referral onto the programme.
Your Route to Self-Employment through STEPS TO WORK will take you through three phases:
Phase 1
The basic awareness session will usually last one half day. This is to ensure that participants do not have unrealistic expectations about their ability to succeed in self-employment.
Phase 2
Attendance at the Start a Business Programme (SABp) will involve eight evening’s attendance over a four week period, where you will receive support, mentoring and help to develop a business plan.
Phase 3
A period of test trading for up to 26 weeks, with the support and guidance of Work West. While test trading, those on JSA will receive a Benefit Based Training Allowance (equal to their rate of JSA) plus a weekly top-up. Income Support or Incapacity Benefit claimants will retain entitlement to any benefit in payment plus a weekly training premium. You may of course leave test trading at any time during this process to set up your own business or take a job.
For more information contact Mary Frances McCullough on (028) 90 610826 or email m.mccullough@workwest.co.uk
Tradelinks
Tradelinks is specifically designed to assist the micro-enterprise sector across Northern Ireland and the Border counties of Louth, Monaghan, Cavan, Leitrim, Sligo and Donegal by:
- enhancing employment generation opportunities
- developing exporting capability
- addressing barriers to cross border trade.
- investigating the opportunities afforded by new technology
- encouraging new market and new product development
- encouraging innovation
Tradelinks will provide you with a range of benefits including:
- a wide-ranging suite of programmes specifically designed to address the issues unique to the micro-enterprise sector.
- a team of experienced assessors and mentors
- the opportunity to form linkages with similar micro-enterprises
- a full signposting service to other programmes
Tradelinks offers a range of programme elements tailored to meet the needs of micro- enterprises at various levels of development.
For more information contact Helen Matthews or Lynne Dorman on (028) 90 610826 or email h.matthews@workwest.co.uk or l.dorman@workwest.co.uk
Creating Enterprise is an innovative collaboration between Work West & Trans Urban Arts providing class based learning, 1:1 support, best practice exchange and a bursary competition for new and existing creative businesses.
Delivered by enterprise specialists and experienced creative entrepreneurs the programme offers you the chance to develop the business skills to complement your technical and creative talents benefiting from the expertise and knowledge of creative entrepreneurs and sharing the journey with like minded people.
For further information, please click here or contact Lynne Dorman on (028) 90610826 or email l.dorman@workwest.co.uk
To download an entry form please click here
