Who we are
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We are a London-based, not-for-profit support agency for small businesses. We are committed to helping anyone who wants to get started in business unlock their entrepreneurial talent. And we support existing businesses to grow and prosper.
East London Small Business Centre is the oldest surviving business support agency in the UK.
Every year we help 300 new businesses to start up. We invest in training for over 1,000 people, and we lend 2 million in funds to entrepreneurs to start-up or expand.
For five east London boroughs; Tower Hamlets, Newham, Havering, Redbridge, Barking and Dagenham as well as the City of London, we're the first port of call for people to gain comprehensive business support, access to finance and one-to-one advice about every step of the business journey.
Additionally the introduction of some pan-London programmes has enabled us to support businesses across London in the last couple of years.
Our aim is to set our clients on the path to establishing a healthy, successful businesses.
The businesses we help are proven to have a higher survival rate than the national average.
Our motivation lies in enterprise and its values: to the individual and to the community. We strongly believe that encouraging enterprise makes east London a better place to live and work.
At the East London Small Business Centre we put the client first, which is why we call what we do business counselling or advising rather than mentoring.
