Small business digital skills boost

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A digital skills project that offers up to £1k worth of support has been launched to help small businesses in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly raise their online profile and generate more sales.

digital skills

Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has secured almost £100k of Government funding to help small businesses develop their knowledge of the internet, social media and the benefits of getting their business online.

Called ‘Digital High Street Skills’, the project is open to all small businesses in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, whether you are a shop, guest house, restaurant or office.

It offers a subsidised training course delivered by the National Skills Academy for Retail so that small businesses can hone their digital skills. Once completed they can apply for a voucher worth up to £1k to spend with selected local companies on services like web design and social media support.

The project is being backed by LEP board director Simon Tregoning, whose own business, Classic Cottages in Helston, now receives 80% of its bookings online.

He said: “The idea is to inspire small businesses to increase their digital skills and grow their business online. Thanks to the funding the LEP has secured we can offer high quality training at greatly reduced cost which opens the door to £1k worth of paid-for digital services from other local businesses.

“With the development of superfast broadband across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly we wanted to help smaller companies and especially retailers seize the opportunities presented by being online.”

A series of information events is being planned and the first one will be held in Newquay at the Atlantic Hotel on December 10.

Digital High Street Skills is available for a limited period. To find out more, register your interest and to watch a video about the project visit the LEP website or follow @CornwallRetail on Twitter.