Support for people facing barriers to business launches in Bicester

By Nicky Godding

31 May 2022

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A new, fully-funded bursary for people who face barriers to starting a business has been launched across Bicester.

Square One is an initiative funded and run by coworking and small business experts, Town Square Spaces Ltd (TownSq), which also operates the Perch Eco Business Centre, where the support will be based.

The support package contains everything an individual needs to start and grow a business, including full-time desk space with high-speed internet access for three months, one-to-one business support, bi-weekly check-in and goal setting sessions, enrolment into the expert-led Startup Club programme and access to networking and special events.

To be eligible, individuals need to be either pre-start or within their first two years of trading, be within a short commute of Perch in Elmsbrook, Bicester, and they must feel they face a barrier to starting their business.

Lucy Wendon, Community Manager at TownSq, said they hope the bursary will encourage those who might not usually take the leap, to consider entrepreneurship. “Starting a business is not always about growing an empire and becoming a household name. For many, owning their own business is just about earning a decent living, doing something they love at a schedule that suits them.

“However, starting a business can be tough and there are many barriers, be they financial, time or simply space to work. It can also be hard to know where to begin - that’s where working around people who have already solved the very challenges you are facing can become an invaluable advantage.

“We’d encourage anyone who has recently launched or has the desire to start a business but is struggling to put the pieces together, to get in touch with us and see how we can help.”

By Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe.

After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts.

She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.