A wide range of business support for small and medium-sized businesses in Leeds and West Yorkshire, including consultancy, finance for investment, leadership and management development, apprenticeship training, export support, energy and carbon advice, and help with Council services. Access is through Business Growth Managers.
Deadline
Open all year
Area
LeedsRating 8/10Local Landscape rating 8 out of 10
Free support for Leeds employers covering recruitment, supported employment, social value, supported internships, apprenticeships and future skills, alongside related incentives and events.
Amount
Employer Incentive: £10,000 per eligible employee for recruitment and £5,000 for retention, per the text. Support package as a whole has no stated amount.
Area
LeedsRating 7/10Local Landscape rating 7 out of 10
Short-term commercial loans of over £1 million for commercially viable private sector infrastructure and construction projects that drive economic growth and job creation in the Leeds City Region.
Amount
From £1,000,000
Area
LeedsRating 7/10Local Landscape rating 7 out of 10
Across West Yorkshire 23 schemes
Open to businesses anywhere in West Yorkshire, Leeds included.
Completely funded support for ambitious businesses in West Yorkshire trading less than five years, with three levels: building momentum, ready to grow, and ready to scale.
Amount
Completely funded support (no cash amount stated)
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 10/10Local Landscape rating 10 out of 10
A service where larger employers transfer unspent apprenticeship levy funds to smaller businesses taking on apprentices, covering 100% of training costs. Businesses seeking a transfer must be located in West Yorkshire and register through a training provider.
Amount
Transfers of up to 50% of a levy payer's unspent levy; the transferred funding covers 100% of the training costs of the apprenticeship.
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 8/10Local Landscape rating 8 out of 10
Free support for people starting or running a business, including one-to-one specialist guidance, access to business databases and help protecting products with patents, trade marks, registered designs and copyright. Aimed at entrepreneurs in Leeds and West Yorkshire.
Amount
Free
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 8/10Local Landscape rating 8 out of 10
Support for West Yorkshire businesses to connect with young people in schools and colleges, including a free Engage with Education toolkit for working with SEND schools and colleges.
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 8/10Local Landscape rating 8 out of 10
A membership for manufacturers offering factory visits, member meetings, representation with local authorities and the Mayoral Office for West Yorkshire, and a talent pipeline with local schools.
Amount
£135 per year (2026). Sponsor membership is a separate tier at £300 per year.
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 8/10Local Landscape rating 8 out of 10
Fully funded support from Green Economy to help green technology installers, suppliers and innovators in West Yorkshire develop products, enter new markets, raise their profile and increase sales.
Amount
Fully funded (no amount stated)
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 7/10Local Landscape rating 7 out of 10
Information for employers on hiring apprentices, placement students, employability sessions, donating materials and sharing apprenticeship levy with small construction businesses, run by Leeds College of Building.
Amount
Up to £2,500
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 8/10Local Landscape rating 8 out of 10
Personal loans for business purposes for people in West Yorkshire who want to grow their own business, including those with weak credit histories. Trust Leeds is an ethical lender that checks each application and credit history.
Amount
Representative example: a £1,000 Trust Leeds loan repaid monthly over 12 months, total repayable £1,060, 6% fixed interest per year, representative 10.9% APR
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 8/10Local Landscape rating 8 out of 10
A promise from local employers to review their working practices and foster a culture of fair work, giving members access to peer networks, a learning and development portal, a recognition mark and a pathway to sustainable growth.
Amount
Price not stated on the page.
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 8/10Local Landscape rating 8 out of 10
Leeds Conservatoire, Come Play With Me, CREATE Britain
A network for everyone working in music across West Yorkshire, offering a place to share knowledge, collaborate on projects and get support to grow a business. Aimed at music sector professionals of all kinds.
Deadline
Open all year
Area
West YorkshireRating 7/10Local Landscape rating 7 out of 10
Free impartial advice and support for businesses employing apprentices, offered through the Business Growth Hub team. Apprenticeships can be used to train staff in the skills a business needs.
Area
West YorkshireRating 7/10Local Landscape rating 7 out of 10
What it does, how long it has been going, how many people work there, what it needs help with and what it is looking for: the best matches in Leeds come first.
Business events in and near Leeds
In-person events in the next 30 days in Leeds, then within about five miles of it. 58 online events are open to anyone.
Coworking spaces, incubators and workspaces a business can use, and venues to hire for a meeting, training day or event, each from its own website. Those with a known address are dots on the map below.
Choose an area on the map to see its page. The shaded shapes are its towns, each with its own page. The dots are its workspaces and venues. Boundaries from the Office for National Statistics.