Staffordshire chamber nets £4m in funding
A £4m grant has been awarded to Staffordshire to help expand businesses and increase jobs.
The cash is part of a £350m Regional Growth Fund (RGF) announced by government to support small and medium sized businesses.
Funding has been targeted at areas of England that have traditionally been more reliant on the public sector.
North Staffordshire Chamber of Commerce said it was now looking for bids from firms wanting to fund projects.
The organisation launched its Jobs and Growth Funds Programme in August, thanks to another £4m grant from the RGF.
To date, it has approved £2.7m for 21 projects in the area.
It said the latest cash award would allow it to continue funding local business projects until February 2017.
Among those businesses that have already benefited is Connect Insurance.
Director Bill Gilroy said a £50,000 grant helped it move from two terrace houses in Hanley, its base for the last 23 years, into new offices in the city.
He said the move, just three weeks ago, was aimed at "future proofing" the business, allowing it to expand and ultimately increase the number of jobs.