Pictured above: (l-r) James Morris, MP for Halesowen & Rowley Regis and Paul Kalinauckas, Chief Executive, BCRS

BCRS (Black Country Reinvestment Society) was recently visited by James Morris, MP for Halesowen & Rowley Regis, at a meeting with the Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

Hosted by BCRS, the small business loan fund at their head office in Wolverhampton Science Park, the LEP's Access to Finance working group aims to develop a strategy to increase access to financial products and facilities in the Black Country for businesses and to bring together the broad range of financial institutions operating locally. Mr Morris discussed with the group the impact of the Government's Localism Agenda on access to finance.

"The Black Country LEP is focused at getting underneath the issues facing the Black Country said James Morris, MP. "It is vital for the future of the Black Country to drive growth within the area and in order to do that it is crucially important to help small to medium businesses.

"In my opinion working in partnership with local authorities is a step in the right direction. If we were to have the local authorities, local businesses and local lenders all working together I believe it would benefit growth in business opportunities and create job stabilisation within the private sector.

"This is where BCRS come in. BCRS understands the local area, the local economy and have provided one of the missing jigsaw pieces for businesses trying to access finance. They understand that small businesses are the backbone of our local economy and are currently working alongside local authorities to help some of these small businesses flourish even in the tough economic climate.

"I am a strong advocate not only for the local businesses in the Black County but also for the Black Country LEP. This working group will make more people aware of financial services available and how to access them. It is an important initiative and I am happy to help where I can. I will try to put pressure on the right people, in the right places and continue to ask the right questions".

BCRS, Chief Executive Paul Kalinauckas said, "James has a keen interest in economic development, sustainability and regeneration in the Black Country region. We were delighted when he accepted the offer of speaking at the Black Country LEP meeting and were very interested to hear his views and opinions on how to increase access to finance for small to medium businesses.

"For me co-operative working is the key ingredient and I am pleased to be involved with the Black Country LEP. This is an excellent opportunity to get a good mix of professional local people around one table to discuss the issue of access to finance and to see what can be achieved for local businesses.

"One of the many outcomes from this working group is a project which could see anyone who is currently having difficulties in accessing finance to come and sit down with local finance professionals. It is still in its infancy but please watch this space - more information will be available soon."