Cumbrian businesses are being urged to apply for millions of pounds of funding to help take them to the next level.

FW Capital, which opened an office in Penrith in May, is managing a £51m debt fund, which is part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund for Cumbria and Tees Valley.

Investment executive Maria Ramsdale said it had opened its office in the Local Enterprise Partnership Conference Centre with the intention of attracting more Cumbrian businesses to accesss the funding.

“We want people in Cumbria to know there is this opportunity for them to take,” said Ms Ramsdale.

The funding is available to small and medium sized enterprises (SME’s) that are limited companies and which trade with other businesses.

Businesses can apply to FW Capital for sums of between £100,000 and £750,000.

“We’ve been working with a food manufacturing company and a retail manufacturer and we’ve had a couple of engineering companies and a couple of transport companies, so it covers a lot of different sectors,” said Ms Ramsdale.

She said the money was intended to help established businesses expand.

“We are looking for for businesses that are established and are on that next curve of growth, for example, taking them from £1m to £5m turnover,” she said. “They’re the type of businesses that have proved their business model and they are on that next growth path.”

The NPIF can either be used in isolation or alongside other loans.

“Sometimes we will be the only funder and sometimes we will work with the bank so we are sharing the risk effectively,” said Ms Ramsdale.

FW Capital is taking part in a number of events to promote the funding available and Ms Ramsdale urged Cumbrian businesses to get in touch to find out more.

People can contact Maria on email at maria.ramsdale@fwcapital.co.uk or by calling 01768 213074.