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Findings of the evaluation of a pilot project of integrated, place based business support provided by GrowBiz, sponsored by Scottish Government and others.

This report presents findings of the evaluation of a pilot project of integrated, place based business support provided by GrowBiz, sponsored by Scottish Government and others. The purpose of this evaluation report is to identify the lessons learned from the pilot which will, in turn, help inform the future business support landscape for rural businesses. This evaluation reviews the intervention delivery and provides insight on how the intervention was perceived by participants and the benefits that they obtained. The evaluation does not quantify, in economic terms, the impact of the pilot intervention.

Executive Summary

Background

This report presents findings of the evaluation of a pilot project of integrated, place based business support provided by GrowBiz, sponsored by Scottish Government and others.The pilot was concerned with providing a range of support to rural micro-enterprises, and was designed to fulfil a 2019-20 Programme for Government (PfG) commitment to “test a placebased approach to integrated business support for micro-enterprises operating in rural areas”.

The intervention provided 12 months’ of free business support to rural enterprises, delivered by GrowBiz, operating primarily in Perth and Kinross. The intervention was also specified to involve use of a digital platform (smart villages) to provide increased opportunities for networking, new ‘routes to market’ and enhancement of digital connectivity and upskilling of rural businesses and communities.

The purpose of this evaluation report is to identify the lessons learned from the pilot which will, in turn, help inform the future business support landscape for rural businesses. This evaluation reviews the intervention delivery and provides insight on how the intervention was perceived by participants and the benefits that they obtained. The evaluation does not quantify, in economic terms, the impact of the pilot intervention.

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