• Swindon & Wiltshire Manufacturing
• Monday October 20 2025

Funding boost for West’s SME manufacturers

SME manufacturers in the West will be able to apply for funding to support innovation under a new scheme launched by the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority.

The authority looks set to secure £2.2 million for the region, doubling its potential impact among manufacturing SMEs.

The plans come at the same time as the Tech Adoption for Growth programme launches, thanks to another £1 million recently secured for the region by the combined authority from the Department for Business and Trade

The project will provide tailored support to SMEs to boost productivity, improve efficiency, and achieve sustainable growth by adopting digital technologies.

It is open to businesses in the West, and in Wiltshire, delivered in partnership through Business West and techSPARK.

In the West, Made Smarter already works in partnership two major centres of innovation in support of the Modern Industrial Strategy. NCC delivers bespoke assessments for businesses to see the benefits that industrial digital technology can bring.

UWE Bristol provides skills and training support including through internship placements, with 16 young professionals getting into the world of work through the programme already – and ten more on offer this year.

The project provides grants of up to £20,000 for digital technology, hardware, and software investments to help businesses create more jobs and thrive. To date, 49 grants totalling £675,000 have been awarded to firms in the region, unlocking an additional £675,000 in private investment match funding.

The region’s new Growth Strategy, published in September, highlightsed the growth of advanced manufacturing, which employs 18,000 people around the region and is worth £29 billion to the economy, and digital and tech.

Over the last decade, the latter sector saw 52 per cent job growth in the West – the most of any region in the country, including London, and now contributes £3.8 billion a year to the regional economy.

The strategy sets out ambitions in both sectors for the next ten years, including developing the future of flight and the UK’s first AI Supercluster, as part of the wider effort to create 72,000 new jobs and 28 per cent economic growth.

Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, said: “Over the next ten years, working together, we can create 72,000 new jobs across the West. New national funding secured from government backs our ever-innovating smaller businesses to help continue to power our region’s future. Since 2015, our digital and sectors have grown by 52% – a great foundation for us to build.

“Made Smarter has already awarded and leveraged over £1.3 million public and private investment here in the West to help dozens of small and medium sized firms grow. Our new Growth Strategy sets out an ambitious plan to build on that success, boost productivity, and create more opportunities for everyone.”