The Business Exchange Swindon & Wiltshire Edition 32: Aug/Sept 2017 | Page 5

BUSINESS NEWS
NEW LOAN FUND
TO BOOST
INVESTMENT BY
LOCAL BUSINESS
The Swindon and Wiltshire Local
Enterprise Partnership (SWLEP) has
opened its call to the ‘Growing Places
Infrastructure Fund (GPIF)’ to support
infrastructure investment by local
businesses.
Businesses can bid for a loan in the region of £1m for
infrastructure projects which will result in the creation of
new jobs and/or new homes. The fund is open to businesses,
the third sector, higher education and research institutions and
the public sector working in partnership with private investors.
The SWLEP is particularly looking for applications requiring
capital investment to accelerate their project or re-invigorate
stalled schemes.
John Mortimer, Chairman of the SWLEP Board said: “We are
pleased to be able to open a call for GPIF loan investment and
to provide much needed infrastructure funding to businesses
and organisations in Swindon and Wiltshire. We are keen to
hear from projects which will help us deliver our priorities for
the area and create new jobs and deliver new homes’.
GPIF is a ‘revolving loan fund’ which offers negot iable
terms for repayment and a straightforward 2 stage application
process. Stage one comprises an application form which will
be independently assessed before consideration by the SWLEP
Board; this will take 7 weeks from the closing date of the call.
Successful applicant/s at this stage will be provided a notional
allocation of funds. Stage two focusses on developing more
detailed business information on issues such as project costs
and procurement. This will take a further 6 weeks.
The SWLEP is keen for eligible private and public sector
organisations to apply for GPIF and utilise the opportunity to
progress their projects. Paddy Bradley, Director of the SWLEP
said “The 2017 GPIF open call for applications has the potential
to unlock infrastructure investment within our area. I would
encourage those with strong business cases to apply and take
advantage of this opportunity to deliver on their projects.”
The deadline to submit applications for a GPIF loan is noon
on Friday, August 4 2017. Further information on the GPIF
scheme and application process can be found by visiting:
www.swlep.co.uk
Royal visit celebrates 20th anniversary
of Swindon company
Swindon IT and Communications company, Excalibur
Communications was honoured by a visit from Her Royal
Highness The Princess Royal on Tuesday July 18, to commemorate
its 20th anniversary and in recognition of the extraordinary work
the company has done for charity and the local community.
Excalibur originally began life trading as a mobile phone
shop and grew to 20 outlets under the Mobile Phone
Centre Franchise. In 2000, the business rebranded as
Excalibur and moved away from mobile retailing, entering
the B2B marketplace and adding IT services to its offering.
In doing so it became a Microsoft Gold Partner and one of
the largest Vodafone partners in the UK.
Today, from its premises at Arclite House on Century
Road, Excalibur employs 60 people and operates a portfolio
of more than 4,000 clients nationwide. The company
has won many awards including top industry award Best
Unified Comms Dealer and was listed at 55 in The Sunday
Times Top 100 Employers 2017, ranking 8th overall for
‘Giving something back’.
Over the last two decades, Excalibur has raised
thousands of pounds for local good causes, and helped
more than 200 organisations in the last three years alone.
In 2015, the Excalibur team raised a staggering £50,000 for
the Bath RUH Forever Friends Appeal, helping to fund the
teenage cancer ward. The company also runs a voluntary
salary sacrifice scheme where employees vote quarterly
on who to donate money to, with the company match
funding those donations. In June, £4,000 was donated to
CALM, a local child Leukaemia Charity.
Executive Chairman James Phipps believes strongly in
sharing business success and giving back to the community
which is a view shared wholeheartedly by Excalibur’s newly
appointed CEO Peter Boucher. In 2016, James Phipps
launched the Younite Foundation charity for children and
young people.
“We are honoured to receive Her Royal Highness
The Princess Royal at our premises today,” said James
Phipps “At Excalibur we are extremely proud of the work
we do within the community, and indeed the working
environment we provide. But we are particularly proud that
such a strong culture of giving and community involvement
runs throughout the team. There is a genuine desire to
support the communities in which we work that goes
beyond corporate social responsibility.”
During her visit Her Royal Highness unveiled a plaque to
mark the 20th anniversary of the foundation of company
and met several members of the team. The Mayor of
Swindon [Councillor Mrs. Maureen Penny], The Police &
Crime Commissioner for Wiltshire Mr. Angus Macpherson,
MBE, members of the Swindon Civic Community and
representatives from local charities Jessie May, BIOS and the
Younite Foundation were also in attendance.
The Princess Royal was presented with a bunch of
flowers by James Phipps’ children Ruby and Isabella Phipps
before she departed.
www.adpilot.co.uk
01225 618 030
Google AdWords campaigns
piloted by experts.
Find out how
we can take your
AdWords campaign
to new heights.
THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2017
5