The King’s Trust rolls out UK-wide support for young entrepreneurs in partnership with LDC

Youth charity The King’s Trust has today announced the UK-wide roll-out of Business Advance, a programme designed and developed in partnership with LDC, to help young entrepreneurs sustain and grow their businesses through the first three years of trading.

Business Advance is an extension of The King’s Trust’s Enterprise programme, which helps young people from all walks of life, including disadvantaged communities, to launch their own businesses by equipping them with the confidence, skills and funding they need to do so.

It is a comprehensive package of support designed to increase the help available to young entrepreneurs as they navigate the early years of running their business, and provides access to a designated mentor, structured business reviews to track progress against targets and ambition, workshops and networking opportunities.

The UK-wide roll-out of Business Advance follows a successful pilot in the Midlands, in which more than 100 young people took part, with 90 per cent confirming it helped to increase their business confidence. This includes young entrepreneurs like Celie Brayson and Emily Bunting, who both launched their companies with the support of the Enterprise programme earlier this year.

Whilst working part-time as a paramedic, Celie founded Leicestershire-based Mini Healthcare Heroes to help teach young children the basics of first aid through a range of fun and interactive books. She is now in the process of expanding her collection to include a series for older children and is in talks to launch a range of first aid kits and educational toys. It’s her mission to create a more sustainable future for the NHS and she hopes to expand the business further to provide first aid classes for children.

Emily started her Birmingham-based hair and make-up business – Emily Bunting Makeup – as a side-hustle after gaining her makeup artistry qualifications. She has expanded to specialise in bridal and occasion hair and make-up, and is now running the business full time.

Commenting on the roll out of Business Advance, Celie said: “The King’s Trust helped me turn an idea into reality and I wouldn’t have been able to grow Mini Healthcare Heroes without the support of Business Advance. The support of my mentor has given me confidence, helped me to lose some of my imposter syndrome and really helped me to think about the future of my business. It’s also shown me that with the right support and encouragement, anything is possible.”

LDC first partnered with The King’s Trust in 2019 to support the Enterprise programme and has so far helped more than 4,400 young people to turn their dreams into reality. Business Advance is funded through the multi-million-pound partnership and has been created with the support of an advisory board consisting of LDC’s employees.

Toby Rougier, Chief Executive of LDC, said: “The next generation of entrepreneurs are critical to the future of the UK economy. They inject fresh ideas and perspectives into the market, create job opportunities and help to drive economic growth. To help them grow and sustain their businesses, it’s important that we give them the tools, skills and funding to achieve this, and being able to extend Business Advance to help young entrepreneurs across the UK is something we’re incredibly proud of.”