Finance For Enterprise secures £43.5m to expand SME lending

South Yorkshire-based Finance For Enterprise (FFE) has been appointed as the fifth accredited delivery partner under the British Business Bank’s Community ENABLE Funding programme, in a move designed to expand access to finance for underserved small businesses.

Announced today, the accreditation will see FFE receive an allocation of £43.5 million to provide loans ranging from £25,001 to £250,000 to smaller businesses across England and Wales.

The funding is intended to support a wide range of business needs, including growth initiatives, equipment and machinery purchases, working capital, expansion plans, and business acquisitions such as management buyouts (MBOs) and management buy-ins (MBIs).

The programme is focused on improving access to finance for businesses that often struggle to secure funding from traditional lenders. This includes firms based in disadvantaged areas, those with limited awareness of available finance options, and underrepresented groups such as female-led and Ethnic Minority-led businesses.

Delivered through Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), the initiative aims to strengthen regional lending ecosystems by supporting organisations with deep local knowledge and a strong track record of working with smaller businesses.

With FFE’s accreditation, a total of £82 million has now been allocated to CDFIs under the programme, marking significant progress towards its target of supporting up to £150 million of lending within its first two years.

Founded in 1985 to support the economic development of Doncaster, Finance For Enterprise has since expanded its reach across England and Wales. Over the past five years, the organisation has delivered £54 million in loans, helping to create more than 1,400 jobs and safeguard a further 1,800 roles, contributing over £140 million to the economy.

Blair McDougall, Minister for Small Business, said the initiative aligns with the government’s broader efforts to improve SME access to finance.

“Through our Plan for Small Business, we are breaking down the barriers SMEs face when accessing finance,” he said. “This includes supporting the growth of organisations like Finance For Enterprise that lend to underserved smaller firms, helping create jobs, opportunities, and growth for local economies in regions like Yorkshire and The Humber.”

Reinald de Monchy, Chief Banking Officer, British Business Bank, added: “It is great to welcome Finance For Enterprise as the fifth accredited lender under the Community ENABLE Funding programme.

“FFE supports a breadth of small businesses across multiple regions across the UK, and the facility size it has been allocated demonstrates our belief in their ability to carry out their mission effectively.”

Andrew Austwick, Managing Director at Finance For Enterprise, said the funding would significantly enhance the organisation’s ability to support excluded SMEs.

“This allocation of up to £43.5 million will allow us to support more underserved businesses, helping them access the finance they need to grow, create jobs, and strengthen their local communities,” he said. “We look forward to working with the British Business Bank to make a real difference to excluded SMEs.”

The Community ENABLE Funding programme is designed to expand the capacity of CDFIs, which play a crucial role in providing finance to businesses that may not meet the criteria of mainstream lenders.