Purpose

The Director of Regeneration and Place
introduced a report which provided details of the Council’s
UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) Place Based Business Support
(PBBS) grant funding allocation of £952,320 from Liverpool
City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA).
 
The report set out recommendations for how the
Council should utilise the grant to deliver the required outputs
and activities. The grant funding presents the opportunity to
achieve savings against the Council’s revenue budget. The
Council has commissioned Wirral Chamber of Commerce and Industry
(WCC) under contract to deliver the Business Support Service (BSS)
until 31 December 2023, with the option to extend delivery to 31
December 2025. It is proposed that the BSS Contract is varied to
incorporate PBBS outputs and be part-funded from the
Council’s UKSPF PBBS allocation. The PBBS allocation will
also enable the commissioning of additional specialist
interventions to support growth in key sectors and clusters and the
funding of two full-time equivalent council staff posts during the
UKSPF grant funding period.
 

Decision

Resolved –
that
 
1. the expenditure
of the UKSPF allocation to deliver Place Based Business Support as
outlined in paragraphs 4.1 to 4.7 of this report be authorised
 
2. the Director of
Law and Governance, in consultation with the Director of
Regeneration and Place be authorised to enter into an extension of
the Business Support Service contract with Wirral Chamber of
Commerce and Industry for an additional two years from 1 January
2024 to 31 December 2025.