Freedom of Information - 2022

We routinely publish information on our website about what we do. If you can’t find the information you are interested in you can make a request using our freedom of information request form. For details about how we handle FOI and Environmental requests please read our FOI Standard and Procedure.

For information about how many FOI requests we have had and how we have dealt with them you can visit the FOI request statistics page. These figures are updated every quarter.

FOI Archive by year:

Freedom of Information Responses

The following responses have been received by the bank. This page will be updated on a monthly basis.

Applications and Software

    FOI 22-108

    Reference FOI 22-108

    Received: 22 March 2023

    Responded: 29 March 2023

    I would like to request the following information:

    • Records of any payments or subscriptions held by the British Business Bank for ChatGPT services in the 12 months to 21 March 2023
    • Details of reasons given procuring any services
    Download our response (.ODT, 179.69KB) to case FOI 22-108

    FOI 22-093

    Reference FOI 22-093

    Received: 12 January 2023

    Responded: 14 February 2023

    • Is software brand name is Payroll System? please reconfirm.
    • Please share the job title and contact number of the contract owner, which does not fall under any exemption.
    Download our response (.ODT, 184.8 KB) to case FOI 22-093

    Decision making and governance

      FOI 22-100

      Reference FOI 22-100

      Received: 13 February 2023

      Responded: 13 March 2023

      Please disclose, preferably by PDF, a copy of any communications related to the Government's shareholdings (via the Future Fund) in The New Craftsman. These will be in the past given that the company went into liquidation last year, including any communications related to buying or selling shares in this company and please also disclose preferably by PDF a copy of the application(s) made to the Future Fund scheme relating to this company, a copy of any communications related to any application and any information relating to any support applied for pertinent to this company which has been rejected and, if this does not exceed the cost limit, a copy of any communications received from Companies House relating to the company after it had gone into liquidation.

      Download our response (.ODT, 198 KB) to case FOI 23-100

      FOI 22-097

      Reference FOI 22-097

      Received: 31 January 2023

      Responded: 15 March 2023

      I would like to request information relating to the Northern Powerhouse investment Fund's Equity partners.

      I am seeking to understand the specific fee structures that were proposed and accepted by the British Business Bank for NPIF Equity funding recipients, including - Management fees, arrangement fees, staff costs.

      Download our response (.ODT, 194 KB) to case FOI 23-097

      What we spend and how we spend it

        FOI-22-109

        Reference FOI 22-109

        Received: 27th March 2023

        Responded: 3rd April 2023

        Can you advise why the bank use a third-party partner to assess and administer application for start-up loans?

        Can you advise how the Third party partners are chosen or selected to carry out the role?

        Can you advise how the Third party partners are chosen or selected to carry out the role?

        Download our response (.ODT, 181.73 KB) to case FOI 22-109

        FOI 22-101

        Reference FOI 22-101

        Received: 13th February 2023

        Responded: 178th February 2023

        As per my records, Vonage Business Limited contract has expired. I would like to know whether this contract is still valid or replaced by any other supplier. If all the information besides the contract dates are the same, I am happy to just receive an update on the contract dates.

        Download our response (.ODT, 183.69 KB) to case FOI 22-101

        FOI 22-098

        Reference FOI 22-098

        Received: 7th February 2023

        Responded: 8th February 2023

        Under FOI legislation could you please provide the following information:

        • How much do you spend on written translations?
        • Are you currently under contract?
        • If you are currently under contract with what supplier and when is the expiry date?
        • When do you intend to issue the next tender?
        • How will you tender? Will it be via framework and if so which one?
        • Who is the responsible person overseeing the contract for translation services??
        Download our response (.ODT, 183.03 KB) to case FOI 22-098

        FOI 22-094

        Reference FOI 22-094

        Received: 19th January 2023

        Responded: 24th January 2023

        The contract information sent by the organisation previously has now expired please can you provide me with a new update of the telephone maintenance contract:

        Please can you send me the following contract information with regards to the organisation’s telephone system maintenance contract (VOIP or PBX, other) for hardware and Software maintenance and support if all the information is still the same besides the contracts dates please send just the new contract dates. It would be much appreciated.

        1. Contract Type: Maintenance, Managed, shared (If so, please state orgs)
        2. Existing Supplier: If there is more than one supplier, please split each contract up individually.
        3. Annual Average Spend: The annual average spends for this contract and please provide the average spend over the past 3 years for each provider
        4. Hardware Brand: The primary hardware brand of the organisation’s telephone system.
        5. Number of telephone users
        6. Contract Duration: please include any extension periods.
        7. Contract Expiry Date: Please provide me with the day/month/year.
        8. Contract Review Date: Please provide me with the day/month/year.
        9. Application(s) running on PBX/VOIP systems: Applications that run on the actual PBX or VOIP system. E.g., Contact Centre, Communication Manager.10.Telephone System Type: PBX, VOIP, Lync etc
        10. Contract Description: Please provide me with a brief description of the overall service provided under this contract.
        11. Go to Market: How where these services procured, please provide me with either the tender notice or the framework reference number. Please specify if procured through other routes.
        12. Contact Detail: Of the person from within the organisation responsible for each contract full Contact details including full name, job title, direct contact number and direct email address.

        If the service support area has more than one provider for telephone maintenance, then can you please split each contract up individually for each provider.

        If the contract is a managed service or is a contract that provides more than just telephone maintenance, please can you send me all the information specified above including the person from within the organisation responsible for that particular contract.

        If the maintenance for telephone systems is maintained in-house, please can you provide me with:

        1. Number of telephone Users:
        2. Hardware Brand: The primary hardware brand of the organisation’s telephone system.
        3. Application(s) running on PBX/VOIP systems: Applications that run on the actual PBX or VOIP system. E.g., Contact Centre, Communication Manager.
        4. Contact Detail: Of the person from with the organisation responsible for telephone maintenance full Contact details including full name, job title, direct contact number and direct email address.

        Also, if the contract is due to expire, please provide me with the likely outcome of the expiring contract.

        If this is a new contract or a new supplier, please can you provide me with a short list of suppliers that bid on this service/support contract?

        Download our response (.ODT, 191.43 KB) to case FOI 22-094

        FOI 22-089

        Reference FOI 22-089

        Received: 3rd January 2023

        Responded: 13th January 2023

        There was a contract taking out which was won by Vodafone for mobile voice & data contracts back in Jan 2021 which comes up for renewal this month.

        Is the tendering to be released for this?

        Download our response (.ODT, 180.5 KB) to case FOI 22-089

        FOI 22-087

        Reference FOI 22-087

        Received: 21st December 2022

        Responded: 22nd December 2022

        Project Title: GB-Sheffield: Atlassian Developer

        Notice reference: BIP739653393

        Project Link: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/notice/9940ec1b-d3bc-41b9-8d60-f5e47ffdf77d?origin=SearchResults&p=1

        We would like to know the below:

        • How many suppliers bid for this project?
        • How many of them were disqualified & failed at what stage?
        • What is the actual value of the project?
        • What is the cost of contract proposed by the winning supplier?
        • What are the other 3 best forgone options according to the cost model? (We’re not interested to know the names of the bidders, just the cost model.)
        • What was the most significant criterion to evaluate the responses?
        • Is there any other benefits offered by any of the bidders/winning bidder external to the scope of the contract?
        • A table with individual score by weightage for all the bidders. (We are not interested to know the names. Just the score please)
        Download our response (.ODT, 183.28 KB) to case FOI 22-087

        FOI 22-086

        Reference FOI 22-086

        Received: 20th December 2022

        Responded: 22nd December 2022

        Project Title: GB-Sheffield: Improved IT Policy and Procedure Documentation

        Notice reference: BIP739717760

        Project Link:  https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/notice/ccab7bc3-24e7-40eb-8928-f0f8e94ef05d?origin=SearchResults&p=1

        We would like to know the below:

        • How many suppliers bid for this project?
        • How many of them were disqualified & failed at what stage?
        • What is the actual value of the project?
        • What is the cost of contract proposed by the winning supplier?
        • What are the other 3 best forgone options according to the cost model? (We’re not interested to know the names of the bidders, just the cost model.)
        • What was the most significant criterion to evaluate the responses?
        • Is there any other benefits offered by any of the bidders/winning bidder external to the scope of the contract?
        • A table with individual score by weightage for all the bidders. (We are not interested to know the names. Just the score please)
        Download our response (.ODT, 183.22 KB) to case FOI 22-086

        FOI 22-085

        Reference FOI 22-085

        Received: 24th November 2022

        Responded: 7th December 2022

        I wish to submit to the organisation a freedom of information request relating to the organisation’s ICT contracts, specifically around:

        1. contact centre contract(s)
        2. inbound network services contract (s)

        The first part of my request relates to contact centre service contracts which could relate to one of the following:

        1. Advanced call distribution to control the flow of calls and maximise customer experience
        2. Email, website live chat and integrations with popular social media apps like Facebook and Instagram
        3. Performance monitoring tools to track performance, customer satisfaction and other key sales metrics

        This could be part of a whole package or separate service applications.

        Please send me the following information for each provider:

        1. Incumbent Supplier: For each of the contract(s) please can you provide me with the supplier of the contract.
        2. Annual Average Spend: For each supplier, please state the annual average (over 3 years) spend for each supplier
        3. Contract Duration: For each supplier, please state the contract duration of the contract expires. If available please also include any contract extensions.
        4. Contract Expiry: For each supplier, please state the date of when the contract expires.
        5. Contract Review: For each supplier, please state the date of when the contract will be reviewed.
        6. Contract Description: For each supplier, please state a brief description of the services provided of the overall contract.
        7. Contact Details: For each supplier, please state the person from within the organisation responsible for the contract. Please provide me with their full name, actual job title, contact number and direct email address. At the very least please provide me with their actual job title.
        8. Number of Agents; please provide me with the total number of contact centre agents;
        9. Number of Sites; please can you provide me with the number of sites the contact centre covers.
        10. Manufacturer of the contact centre: Who is the manufacturer of the contact centre system that you operate?
        11. Do you use Microsoft Exchange 2003 as your email server? If not, then which products do you use?
        12. Number of email users: Approximate number of email users across the organisations.

        The second part of my request relates to the use inbound network services contracts which could relate to one of the following:

        1. 0800, 0845, 0870, 0844, 0300 number
        2. Routing of calls
        3. Caller Identifier
        4. Caller Profile- linking caller details with caller records
        5. Interactive voice response (IVR)

        For a contract relating to the above please can you provide me with?

        1. Incumbent Supplier: For each of the contract(s) please can you provide me with the supplier of the contract.
        2. Annual Average Spend: For each supplier, please state the annual average (over 3 years) spend for each supplier
        3. Contract Expiry: For each supplier, please state the date of when the contract expires.
        4. Contract Review: For each supplier, please state the date of when the contract will be reviewed.
        5. Contract Description: For each supplier, please state a brief description of the services provided of the overall contract.
        6. Contact Details: For each supplier, please state the person from within the organisation responsible for the contract. Please provide me with their full name, actual job title, contact number and direct email address.
        Download our response (.ODT, 183.08 KB) to case FOI 22-078

        FOI 22-078

        Reference FOI 22-078

        Received: 20th December 2022

        Responded: 22nd December 2022

        Project Title: GB-Sheffield: Web Architecture Test Support

        Notice reference: BIP731163786

        Project Link: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/notice/e7da98be-11c8-4394-9d62-07783622c4ee?origin=SearchResults&p=1

        We would like to know the below:

        • How many suppliers bid for this project?
        • How many of them were disqualified & failed at what stage?
        • What is the actual value of the project?
        • What is the cost of contract proposed by the winning supplier?
        • What are the other 3 best forgone options according to the cost model? (We’re not interested to know the names of the bidders, just the cost model.)
        • What was the most significant criterion to evaluate the responses?
        • Is there any other benefits offered by any of the bidders/winning bidder external to the scope of the contract?
        • A table with individual score by weightage for all the bidders. (We are not interested to know the names. Just the score please)
        Download our response (.ODT, 190.32 KB) to case FOI 22-078

        FOI 22-073

        Reference FOI 22-073

        Received: 15th November 2022

        Responded: 24th November 2022

        A copy of the complete and where required redacted copy of the bid submitted by the contractor listed below: Name and address of the contractor: The Bridge IT Ltd, Adamson House, 2 Centenary Way, SALFORD M50 1RD

        Official Title: GB-Sheffield: Dynamics 365 CRM - Contract Awarded - 08/11/2022

        Buyer's Organisation: British Business Bank

        Download our response (.ODT, 180.09 KB) to case FOI 22-073

        FOI 22-072

        Reference FOI 22-072

        Received: 15th November 2022

        Responded: 2nd December 2022

        A copy of the complete and where required redacted copy of the bid submitted by the contractor listed below:
        Cognizant Worldwide Ltd, 1 Kingdom Street Paddington London W2 6BD

        Official Title: GB-Sheffield: Web Architecture Test Support - Contract Awarded - 08/11/2022

        Buyer's Organisation: British Business Bank

        Download our response (.ODT, 179.71 KB) to case FOI 22-072

        FOI 22-071

        Reference FOI 22-071

        Received: 14th November 2022

        Responded: 24th November 2022

        FMP Global contract has expired. Please provide the latest updates.

        Download our response (.ODT, 182.82 KB) to case FOI 22-071

        FOI 22-060

        Reference FOI 22-060

        Information that relates to the organisation’s contracts around ICT contract(s) for Server Hardware Maintenance, Server Virtualisation Licenses and Maintenance and Storage Area Network (SAN) Maintenance/Support, which may include:

        • Server Hardware Maintenance- contracts relating to the support and maintenance of the organisation’s physical servers.
        • Virtualisation Maintenance/Support/ Licensing (VMware, Solaris, Unix, Linux, Windows Server)
        • Storage Area Network Maintenance/Support (EMC, NetApp etc)
        Download our response (.ODT, 186.34 KB) to case FOI 22-060

        FOI 22-057

        Reference FOI 22-057

        Received: 25th September 2022

        Responded: 10th October 2022

        The information I'm requesting is regarding the software contracts that the organisation uses, for the following fields.

        Enterprise Resource Planning Software Solution (ERP):

        Primary Customer Relationship Management Solution (CRM) (eg, Salesforce, Lagan CRM, Microsoft Dynamics; software of this nature

        Primary Human Resources (HR) and Payroll Software Solution (eg iTrent, ResourceLink, HealthRoster; software of this nature).

        The organisation’s primary corporate Finance Software Solution (eg. Agresso, Integra, Sapphire Systems; software of this nature).

        1. The brand of the software: Can you please provide me with the actual name of the software. Please do not provide me with the supplier name again please provide me with the actual software name.
        2. Description of the contract: Can you please provide me with detailed information about this contract and please state if upgrade, maintenance and support is included.
        3. Please also list the software modules included in these contracts.
        4. Number of Users/Licenses: What is the total number of user/licenses for this contract?
        5. Annual Spend: What is the annual average spend for each contract?
        6. Contract Duration: What is the duration of the contract please include any available extensions within the contract.
        7. Contract Start Date: What is the start date of this contract? Please include month and year of the contract. DD-MM-YY or MM-YY.
        8. Contract Expiry: What is the expiry date of this contract? Please include month and year of the contract. DD-MM-YY or MM-YY.
        9. Contract Review Date: What is the review date of this contract? Please include month and year of the contract. If this cannot be provided please provide me estimates of when the contract is likely to be reviewed. DD-MM-YY or MM-YY.
        10. Contact Details: I require the full contact details of the person within the organisation responsible for this particular software contract (name, job title, email, contact number).
        Download our response (.ODT, 189.85 KB) to case FOI 22-057

        FOI 22-053

        Reference FOI 22-053

        Received: 24th August 2022

        Responded: 6th September 2022

        1. What is the name of your organisation?
        2. How many employees are at your organisation?
        3. How many mobile phone and mobile broadband (data only) connections do you currently have in total?
        4. How many of these are data only (for laptops and tablets)?
        5. How many of these are voice and data (for mobile phones)?
        6. Who is your mobile phone network provider?
        7. Do you have a shared data bundle or individual allowances?
        8. What is your organisations average total data usage across all connections?
        9. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in April 2021?
        10. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in May 2021?
        11. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in June 2021?
        12. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in July 2021?
        13. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in August 2021?
        14. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in September 2021?
        15. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in October 2021?
        16. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in November 2021?
        17. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in December 2021?
        18. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in January 2022?
        19. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in February 2022?
        20. What was your total spend on mobile phone contract and overage costs in March 2022?
        21. Do these numbers include VAT?
        22. When did you renew your mobile phone contract?
        23. How long does your contract run for?
        24. What is the renewal date of your contract?
        25. How did you source your contract?
        26. What is the value of your hardware/technology/transformation fund provided with the contract (if none provided please mark as n/a)
        27. Who is the shareholder/primary contact for this contract?
        Download our response (.ODT, 183.94 KB) to case FOI 22-053

        FOI 22-051

        Reference FOI 22-051

        Received: 15th August 2022

        Responded: 1st September 2022

        1. What services are included in the contract(s)? (e.g. printing vs scanning etc)
        2. Which supplier is delivering them? (If in-house, please confirm or if multiple provider please
        3. identify them)
        4. How many contracts does this entail and what's the award value for each?
        5. When do these contracts expire and do they have any extensions?
        6. What is the annual volumetric data (split by Annual Mono and Annual Colour print)?
        7. What is the total number of devices supplied?
        8. What Managed Print Service software solution do you use?
        9. How many Mono MFDs and Colour MFDs do you have?
        10. What document management solution do you use?
        11. What High Volume printing devices do you use?
        12. Were any framework agreements used to procure the goods/services? If so, which ones?
        13. Any documentation you can provide me with, e.g. the order form
        14. What department is managing the contract and who's the decision-maker?
        15. How many Adobe Acrobat (standard, professional and reader) licenses do you have?
        16. What is the annual cost?
        17. When is the renewal date?
        18. Who is responsible for the contract?
        19. Do you use any other PDF editing tools?
        Download our response (.ODT, 186.78 KB) to case FOI 22-051
        Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-051

        Our products and programmes

          FOI 22-110

          Reference FOI 22-110

          Received: 28th March 2023

          Responded: 24th April 2023

          1. Number of BBLS loans in 1+ month loan arrears
          2. Number of BBLS loans in 3+ month loan arrears
          3. Number of BBLS loans written off
          4. Number of BBLS loan guarantees paid to the accredited lender following write-off
          5. Value of BBLS loans in 1+ month loan arrears (in terms of outstanding loan balance)
          6. Value of BBLS loans in 3+ month loan arrears (in terms of outstanding loan balance)
          7. Value of BBLS loans written off (in terms of outstanding loan balance)
          8. Value of BBLS loan guarantees paid to the accredited lender following write-off
          9. Number of CBILS loans in 1+ month loan arrears
          10. Number of CBILS loans in 3+ month loan arrears
          11. Number of CBILS loans written off
          12. Number of CBILS loan guarantees paid to the accredited lender following write-off
          13. Value of CBILS loans in 1+ month loan arrears (in terms of outstanding loan balance)
          14. Value of CBILS loans in 3+ month loan arrears (in terms of outstanding loan balance)
          15. Value of CBILS loans written off (in terms of outstanding loan balance)
          16. Value of CBILS loan guarantees paid to the accredited lender following write-off
          17. Number of CBILS loans in 1+ month loan arrears
          18. Number of CBILS loans in 3+ month loan arrears
          19. Number of CBILS loans written off
          20. Number of CBILS loan guarantees paid to the accredited lender following write-off
          21. Value of CBILS loans in 1+ month loan arrears (in terms of outstanding loan balance)
          22. Value of CBILS loans in 3+ month loan arrears (in terms of outstanding loan balance)
          23. Value of CBILS loans written off (in terms of outstanding loan balance)
          24. Value of CBILS loan guarantees paid to the accredited lender following write-off
          25. Amounts advanced under CBILS guaranteed by security type
          26. Number of loan agreements under CBILS guaranteed by security type
          27. Amounts advanced under RLS guaranteed by security type
          28. Number of loan agreements under RLS guaranteed by security type
          Download our response (.ODT, 186.49 KB) to case FOI 22-110
          Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-110 FOI 22-110

          FOI 22-107

          Reference FOI 22-107

          Received: 9th March 2023

          Responded: 24th April 2023

          Can you provide copies of the:

          • EFG Legal Agreement
          • EFG Lender Manual
          • EFG Lender Guide
          • EFG Borrower Guide

          On 4 April you stated:

          “I would also like to clarify I am interested in the versions that cover the period of 2016.”

          Download our response (.ODT, 184.82 KB) to case FOI 22-107
          Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-107 FOI 22-107

          FOI 22-106

          Reference FOI 22-106

          Received: 02 March 2023

          Responded: 30 March 2023

          1. Would like to know whether British Business Bank can confirm receipt of quarterly financial information from Streetteam Software Ltd for its Future Fund investment and any other loans/investments into Streetteam Software ltd. Please list other investment names if there are any.
          2. Did British Business Bank get any forecasts to investors, budgets, or monthly cash flow information regarding its Future Fund investment into Streetteam Software Ltd? If so, how often?
          3. Is British Business Bank aware of any terms of the Future Fund loan being broken by Streetteam Software Ltd? If so, please state which and when BBB became aware.
          4. Did British Business bank raise any concerns over Streetteam Software’s viability? If so, when and was there a response?
          5. Can you confirm the number of businesses which have applied for Future Fund funding or any other funding provided by BBB at the address of 3 Loughborough Street London SE11 5RB. Please indicate the funding.
          Download our response (.ODT, 186.43 KB) to case FOI 22-106 Download the response to the internal review (.ODT, 182.42 KB) to case IR 22-105

          FOI 22-105

          Reference FOI 22-105

          Received: 27 February 2023

          Responded: 21 March 2023

          Can you please tell me how many construction companies have defaulted on their CBILS, CLBILS or bounce-back loans to date (30 January 2023)?

          Can you please tell me how many construction companies remain in arrears on their CBILS, CLBILS or bounce-back loans as of today's date (30 January 2023)?

          Please do not include any of the same companies within the figures provided for arrears as you have done in the figures for defaults. If it is not possible to separate those companies out, can you please provide the figure with those companies included, but state clearly that you have done so.

          Download our response (.ODT, 190.55 KB) to case FOI 22-105

          FOI 22-102

          Reference FOI 22-102

          Received: 13 February 2023

          Responded: 3 March 2023

          The request relates to investments made by the Future Fund. Please provide:-

          1. A list of the 12 companies (according to the Future Fund's latest update) that have received Future Fund loans that converted into equity and where the loan recipient is now in administration or insolvency.
          2. A list of the 83 companies (according to the Future Fund's latest update) that have received Future Fund loans and gone into administration or insolvency without the loan converting into equity.
          3. Information about the size of the loans in question and the resulting equity interest.
          4. Any information about loans repaid in cases where the loan recipient had sufficient funds to repay the Future Fund as a creditor.
          5. If the total figures have changed since the last Future Fund public update, please provide the correct figures/lists.
          Download our response (.ODT, 200.49 KB) to case FOI 22-102

          FOI 22-099

          Reference FOI 22-099

          Received: 7th February 2023

          Responded: 3rd March 2023

          Please can I have details of the covid loans issued to Lincolnshire businesses:

          1. The number of loans issued in total (CBILS/BBL) and the total value
          2. The number of these that have been paid back in full and the value repaid

          And nationally:

          1. The number of loans issued in total (CBILS/BBL) and the total value.
          2. The number of these that have been paid back in full and the value repaid

          Please provide the most up-to-date figures available, and indicate what date the figures are based on.

          Download our response (.ODT, 672.56 KB) to case FOI 22-099

          FOI 22-096

          Reference FOI 22-096

          Received: 30th January 2023

          Responded: 27th February 2023

          I would like to know the names and value of investments of the83 companies that received convertible loans from the Future Fund that have gone into administration or been declared insolvent as of December 31, 2022.

          I would further like to know the names and value of investments of the 12 businesses that had converted their loans into equity stakes that have also failed.

          Preferably I would like these listed by name of company and sterling value of the investments made by the Future Fund in each.

          Download our response (.ODT, 196.12 KB) to case FOI 22-096

          FOI 22-095

          Reference FOI 22-095

          Received: 27th January 2023

          Responded: 15th February 2023

          Last year I made an FOI request regarding the number of small firms in Northern Ireland in arrears on their Bounce Back Loans.There were 3,000 in arrears in August 2022, owing £5.72m.

          Can you tell me if there's any update on those numbers and how much is owed? How much is the interest on what is owed?

          Download our response (.ODT, 179.84 KB) to case FOI 22-095

          FOI 22-092

          Reference FOI 22-092

          Received: 12th January 2023

          Responded: 25th March 2023

          Further to FOI 22-059, which I received a response to on 28 October 2022, I would like to request some additional information:

          1. The number of CBILS loans that have been fully repaid. Please provide a breakdown by industry and region as per the previous spreadsheet.
          2. The percentage of total CBILS loans that have been fully repaid.
          3. The number of CBILS loans that have been fully repaid and which were overpaid by the loanee. Please provide a breakdown by industry and region as per the previous spreadsheet.
          4. The number of outstanding CBILS loans in which the loanees have overpaid. Please provide a breakdown by industry and region as per the previous spreadsheet.
          Download our response (.ODT, 182.9 KB) to case FOI 22-092
          Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-092

          FOI 22-090

          Reference FOI 22-090

          Received 11 January 2023

          Responded: 3 March 2023

          I would like some information on Bounce Back Loans

          1. BBL Agreements

            In relation to the loan, was it a standard agreement across all banks? If so, can I have a copy of the standard agreement.

            If not, were standard conditions of the loan to be incorporated into the banks agreement. If that is the case, can I have copy of those standard conditions.

            Otherwise, I will assume that each bank had their own agreement and that I would need to see a copy of that agreement before I can advise clients.

          2. Striking off applications

            What process should banks undertake when receiving notice of a striking off application from one of their clients that has an outstanding BBL? Should they automatically reject it? If so, is there any chance that they can change their stance and allow an insolvent company to be struck off? What are the circumstances when this can happen? I would have expected some sort of investigation be undertaken by the Bank to try and work out if there has been any abuse of the scheme.

          3. If the banks stance is they should not allow a company to be struck off when it has an outstanding Bounce Back Loan, then what happens after the objection is made? It seems to me that there are a number of companies out there that have had striking off applications objected to but nothing else is happening with them. They are not trading and are offering nothing to the economy other than debts that will never be paid.
          4. What process do the banks have to go through in order claim under the guarantee?
          5. Once a guarantee payment is made, what efforts do the Bank take to recover that debt?
          Download our response (.ODT, 187.24 KB) to case FOI 22-090
          Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-090

          FOI 22-088

          Reference FOI 22-088

          Received: 20 December 2022

          Responded: 4 January 2023

          Would it be possible to supply the updates to EFGS eligibility requirements made by BBB up to the ones currently showing on BBB’s website (one is dated 2017 and the other is dated 2019)?

          Download our response (.ODT, 179.51 KB) to case FOI 22-088

          FOI 22-084

          Reference FOI 22-084

          Received: 14 December 2022

          Responded: 16 January 2023

          I would like to request under the freedom of information act the criteria you use to allow a limited company with a Bounce back loan to be dissolved (striked off) from the companies House register.

          I request the following information:

          1. criteria to allow a limited company with a BBL to close by striking off
          2. why the BEIS continue to object against a strike off after 1 year which is against the process
          3. How many BEIS objections to company dissolution remain after 1 year after the strike off application was submitted.
          4. How many BBL schemes have the government repaid to banks through dissolution Closures?
          5. the average time the BEIS take to make a guarantee claim payment once assessed properly
          6. where banks have been found to not correctly follow AML/KYC procedures, thus, the government guarantee is not claimed/payable what happens to the debt
          7. any communications between the BEIS and the government departments as to the action to be taken with regards to dead inactive companies remaining on companies house register because of BBLS defaults.
          8. any communications between BEIS and government departments and insolvency practitioners outlining the process to follow where companies are truly insolvent with Bounce back loans and unable to afford liquidation fees
          9. a list of MP's and their company names that have taken advantage of the BBLS.
          Download our response (.ODT, 185.27 KB) to case FOI 22-084 (.odt - 185kb)

          Following our partial response to you dated 16 January 2023, I have an update on our answer to Q.3

          3. How many BEIS objections to company dissolution remain after 1 year after the strike off application was submitted?

          With regards to Question 4 "How many BBL schemes have the government repaid to banks through dissolution closures?”, we emailed you on 12 January 2023 to ask for further clarification and if your question was for the number of guarantee claims that have been settled by BBB on behalf of BEIS in relation to dissolved corporate borrowers.

          Download our response (.ODT, 182.68 KB) to case FOI 22-092

          FOI 22-082

          Reference FOI 22-082

          Received: 05th December 2022

          Responded: 13th January 2023

          1. Can you please tell me how many initiations of investigations into allegations of fraudulently obtained CBILS, CLBILS or bounce-back loans have taken place to date regarding construction companies?

          2. If you do not hold the figures for the number of investigations, can you please provide figures for how many times the Bank flagged suspicions of such fraudulent measures with your partners on the loan schemes? By flagged, I mean any internal system/measures you have in order to raise suspicions about possible fraud related to a loan.

          Download our response (.ODT, 185.99 KB) to case FOI 22-082

          FOI 22-081

          Reference FOI 22-081

          Received: 30th November 2022

          Responded: 16th December 2022

          The information I require was publicly available in 2009-10 and in 2014 when BBB first launched, it’s just it’s impossible to locate it on the internet now.

          I am looking to receive all details about the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme (EFGS) from the early days of the scheme ie from when it was launched in 2009 until the end of 2010 (when it was overseen by the Department of Business, Innovation & Skills) and also from when British Business Bank took over running of EFGS in 2014.

          I am particularly interested in eligibility criteria about EFGS - ie what companies were eligible for it and what factors made companies ineligible for it.

          It is possible to find information about EFGS on the internet but this is later information, and I am looking for information from the early days of the scheme (2009-10) and from when BBB first took it over in 2014.

          Download our response (.ODT, 264.08 KB) to case FOI 22-081

          FOI 22-080

          Reference FOI 22-080

          Received: 28 November 2022

          Responded: 23 January 2023

          I request copies of any records you hold that document the following databases:

          1. The British Business Bank’s Guarantees Portal
          2. The British Business Bank’s Covid reporting database

          Please supply any relevant documents including (but not limited to) user guides, database schemas, entity relationship diagrams, and data dictionaries.

          Your organisation may use different terminology for similar kinds of documents. Please consider any such documentation within the scope of this request

          To be clear, this request seeks no content from the databases themselves, but rather only metadata and written documentation describing and clarifying the structure and technical aspects of these database.

          Please supply all such records produced or in use at the date that the search for such records is conducted.

          If any documents or any parts of these documents are exempt under other sections of FOIA, please release all segregable portions of otherwise exempt material.

          Download our response (.ODT, 199.48 KB) to case FOI 22-080
          Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-080 FOI 22-080

          FOI 22-079

          Reference FOI 22-079

          Received: 23 November 2022

          Responded: 29 November 2022

          Please can you send me details of Enterprise Finance Scheme that I was party of, the guarantee was called upon and recovered on from British Business Bank.

          Please can you send details on :

          1. The amount that was claimed from the BBB.
          2. The date the claim was made.
          3. Any unrecoverable amounts that the financial institute was unable to claim from the borrower.

          The Company Name : City Coffee Bar Limited

          Previous Registered Address: 60 Wolsey Drive, Kingston upon Thames, KT2 5DN

          Last Registered Address: Langley House Park Road, East Finchley, London, N2 8EY

          Directors: Arvind Sabharwal, Khushbu Sabharwal

          Download our response (.ODT, 188.76 KB) to case FOI 22-079

          FOI 22-077

          Reference FOI 22-077

          Received: 23 November 2022

          Responded: 21 December 2022

          Can you please email me the FULL portfolio of investments the BBB currently holds. This includes all finance facilities with companies etc. The full portfolio and capital invested.

          Download our response (.ODT, 189.74 KB) to case FOI 22-077 (.pdf 189kb)

          FOI 22-076

          Reference FOI 22-076

          Received: 21 November 2022

          Responded: 8 December 2022

          I see from your website that as at 31 December 2021, 265 convertible loans had converted into equity shares.
          https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/ourpartners/coronavirus-business-interruption-loan-schemes/future-fund/future-fund-companies/

          The £5m loan to London Resort Company Holdings is now in jeopardy due to a winding up application (see below).

          I wish to know:

          1. Are the British Business Bank aware of this winding up application
          2. If so, or having now been made aware of it, what action are they taking to preserve taxpayers money by way of the £5 million loan.
          3. are they aware of a company called Theme Holdings Ltd that was set up in 2001 with a fixed and floating charge across all of the KEH LTD assets that would include the major shareholding of LRCH and has powers to direct what happens in the KEH group and to appears to have the powers to seize all of the assets.
          Download our response (.ODT, 191.66 KB) to case FOI 22-076

          FOI 22-075

          Reference FOI 22-075

          Received: 18th November 2022

          Responded: 5th December 2022

          Does the BBB have any data on default rates and recovery in case of default for SMEs for the last 20 years?

          Also, if you have data on default for receivable books for SMEs that would be even more helpful. I have been unsuccessful so far in finding this data on the website.

          Very much looking forward to hearing from you!

          I'm not looking at a particular scheme, but just default and recovery rate data on SMEs in general across the cycle. Nothing related to a particular scheme.

          Download our response (.ODT, 181.89 KB) to case FOI 22-075

          FOI 22-074

          Reference FOI 22-074

          Received: 17th November 2022

          Responded: 23rd November 2022

          Please can your organisation provide the following information:

          1. The number of roles in your association (expressed in numbers of FTE), that are mainly or exclusively focussed on issues of equality, diversity, or inclusivity. For example, this could include (amongst other guises) “EDI officers” or “diversity and inclusion project managers” but would not include general HR managers.
          2. Either a) the pay band of each of these roles, or b) the combined total salaries for these roles. Whichever measure is more in accordance with your data preferences.
          3. In the past 12 months the number of staff days across your organisation which have been committed to attending equality training programmes, whether internally run or with external consultants. (staff days = duration of the training programme multiplied by the number of staff in attendance for the course).
          Download our response (.ODT, 181.82 KB) to case FOI 22-074

          FOI 22-070

          Reference FOI 22-070

          Received: 8th November 2022

          Responded: 7th December 2022

          1. How many loans of over £250,000 were made on the CBILS scheme by;
            1. all lenders.
            2. lenders that are a Regulated Bank.
            3. lenders that are not a Regulated Bank. i.e. specialist, peer to peer or crowd funding lenders.
          2. How many loans of over £250,000 have been reported in default upon which a CBILS recovery claim has been made by;
            1. all lenders.
            2. lenders that are a Regulated Bank.
            3. lenders that are not a Regulated Bank. i.e. specialist, peer to peer or crowd funding lenders.
          3. How many loans of £250,000 and under were made on the CBILS scheme by;
            1. all lenders.
            2. lenders that are a Regulated Bank.
            3. lenders that are not a Regulated Bank. i.e. specialist, peer to peer or crowd funding lenders.
          4. How many loans of £250,000 and under have been reported in default upon which a CBILS recovery claim has been made by;
            1. all lenders.
            2. lenders that are a Regulated Bank.
            3. lenders that are not a Regulated Bank. i.e. specialist, peer to peer or crowd funding lenders.
          5. How many accredited CBILS lenders were not Regulated Banks and what are their names.
          Download our response (.ODT, 185.67 KB) to case FOI 22-070
          Supplementary Documentation to 22-070 FOI 22-070

          FOI 22-067

          Reference FOI 22-067

          Received: 31st October 2022

          Responded: 28th November 2022

          details of the databases in which the British Business Bank stores information about individual BBLS and CBILS loans. Please tell me, for each database or spreadsheet in which information is stored:

          1. The Bank's internal name for the database or spreadsheet (e.g. "BBLS Loans Master Database")
          2. The name of the software/database used (e.g. Microsoft Excel, PostgreSQL, Oracle Database)
          3. A brief description of the type of information stored in the database or spreadsheet (e.g. "Recipient details, lender details, amount lent, and maturity date of each loan")

          Please note:

          • I am not asking for information about individual lenders or loans, only general information about the data held, so a section 43 exemption should not apply.
          • The Bank's Chief Commercial Officer told the Treasury Select Committee on 27 April 2022 that the Bank holds "70 data points" on 1.6 million loans; I am happy to receive information only about the data sources that include the 70 data points identified there (though also happy to receive more information if possible within the time limit).
          • In a previous request (your reference FOI 22-001) you estimated that it would take 12-14 hours to identify these databases or spreadsheets, so I trust it should be possible to supply this information within the time limit.
          Download our response (.ODT, 188.24 KB) to case FOI 22-067

          FOI 22-064

          Reference FOI 22-064

          Received: 21st October 2022

          Responded: 17th November 2022

          Can you please tell me how many construction companies have defaulted on their CBILS, CLBILS or bounce-back loans to date?

          Can you please tell me how many construction companies remain in arrears on their CBILS, CLBILS or bounce-back loans as of today's date (21 October 2022)?

          Download our response (.ODT, 187.65 KB) to case FOI 22-064

          FOI 22-063

          Reference FOI 22-063

          Received: 20th October 2022

          Responded: 14th November 2022

          Please clarify the responses to the following information requests:

          1. Total number of companies in receipt of support from the Future Fund
          2. What proportion are/were based in London
          3. How many of those companies are still trading.
          4. As the Future Fund was matched funding perhaps you could also provide the details of the funds who provided the matched funding.
          Download our response (.ODT, 192.51 KB) to case FOI 22-063

          FOI 22-061

          Reference FOI 22-061

          Received: 14th October 2022

          Responded: 9th November 2022

          I am interested in the data relating to CBILS. The published data includes information for the top 25 intermediary lenders.

          I am requesting the same data for all 160 CBILS intermediary lenders from the same date.

          After clarification on 21 October 2022, you confirmed

          I would prefer an up-to-date extract if that is available.

          But if that is not possible, I would like the data as of the same date as the top 25 were produced.

          Download our response (.ODT, 183.47 KB) to case FOI 22-061

          FOI 22-059

          Reference FOI 22-059

          Received: 30th October 2022

          Responded: 28th October 2022

          (In relation to CBILS) I would be grateful if you could provide me with the same spreadsheet but with column E (defaults) updated to include the most recent information available to the BBB. The rest of the information in the spreadsheet should remain unchanged.

          Download our response (.ODT, 180.45 KB) to case FOI 22-059
          Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-059 FOI 22-059

          FOI 22-058

          Reference FOI 22-058

          Received: 27th September 2022

          Responded: 1st October 2022

          Please provide a copy of all emails sent by and received by Patrick Magee concerning the release of bounce back loan recipient data under FOI between 25th April 2022 and 1st June 2022. Please limit this request to his BBB inbox.

          Download our response (.ODT, 187.65 KB) to case FOI 22-058
          Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-058

          FOI 22-056

          Reference FOI 22-056

          Received: 27th September 2022

          Responded: October 2022

          1. For the top ten Lead Investors by number of successful applications, the number of successful applications for each Lead Investor
          2. For the top ten Lead Investors by amount of funding provided by the Future Fund, the amount of funding for each Lead Investor
          3. For both 1 and 2, the identities of each of the Lead Investors.
          Download our response (.ODT, 199.54 KB) to case FOI 22-056

          FOI 22-054

          Reference FOI 22-054

          Received: 28th September 2022

          Responded: October 2022

          1. For the top ten Lead Investors by number of successful applications, the number of successful applications for each Lead Investor
          2. For the top ten Lead Investors by amount of funding provided by the Future Fund, the amount of funding for each Lead Investor
          3. For both 1 and 2, the identities of each of the Lead Investors.
          Download our response (.ODT, 104.68 KB) to case FOI 22-054

          FOI 22-052

          Reference FOI 22-052

          Received: 16th August 2022

          Responded: 14 September 2022

          I wish to see full copies of the following materials relating to loans given to Greensill Capital:

          • Loan agreements
          • Risk assessments/due diligence reports
          • Value for money assessments
          Download our response (.ODT, 181.04 KB) to case FOI 22-052

          Staff and Recruitment

            FOI 22-091

            Reference FOI 22-091

            Received: 12 January 2023

            Responded: 14 February 2023

            Please could you provide the following information under the freedom of information act covering the last 12 months, or the most recent 12 month period recorded:

            1. Has the organisation used agencies to recruit temporary/contractor staff?
              1. If so please confirm the total agency spend on temporary/contractor staff??
              2. Please provide a breakdown of your answer to question 1a, splitting the spend by job title/ specialism
            2. Has the organisation used agencies to recruit permanent staff?
              1. If so please confirm the total agency spend on permanent staff?
              2. Please provide a breakdown of your answer to question 2a, splitting the spend by job title/ specialism
            3. The contact name of the person responsible for dealing with permanent recruitment?
            4. The contact name of the person responsible for dealing with temporary/contractorrecruitment?
            Download our response (.ODT, 183.68 KB) to case FOI 22-091

            FOI 22-083

            Reference FOI 22-083

            Received: 8 December 2022

            Responded: 19 December 2022

            • How much money was spent by the British Business Bank on permanent recruitment fees for salaried positions over £50,000, over the last 12 months (from 1st Jan 2021 to now).
            • Of that, how much was spent through framework RM6290, or its predecessor framework RM6002 Permanent Recruitment Solutions.
            • Of that, how much was spent through framework RM6229, or its predecessor framework RM6002 Permanent Recruitment Solutions.
            Download our response (.ODT, 179.21 KB) to case FOI 22-083

            FOI 22-068

            Reference FOI 22-068

            Received: 31 October 2022

            Responded: 16 November 2022

            Please provide a breakdown of spend on marketing and communications for the last 2 financial years by activity and supplier.

            Please also provide headcount and total salary cost for the same period.

            After clarification for question 2 it was confirmed that you required: your marketing and communications team’s headcount and salary costs.

            Download our response (.ODT, 180.18 KB) to case FOI 22-068
            Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-068 FOI 22-068

            FOI 22-066

            Reference FOI 22-066

            Received: 31 October 2022

            Responded: 16 November 2022

            Please provide a breakdown of spend on marketing and communications for the last 2 financial years by activity and supplier.

            Please also provide headcount and total salary cost for the same period.

            After clarification for question 2 it was confirmed that you required: your marketing and communications team’s headcount and salary costs.

            Download our response (.ODT, 182 KB) to case FOI 22-066

            FOI 22-055

            Reference FOI 22-055

            Received: 12 September 2022

            Responded: 22 September 2022

            Please can your organisation provide in Excel CSV format, the following information:

            • a) The number of roles in your association (expressed in numbers of FTE), that are mainly or exclusively focussed on issues of equality, diversity, or inclusivity. For example, this could include (amongst other guises) “EDI officers” or “diversity and inclusion project managers” but would not include general HR managers.
            • b) Either a) the pay band of each of these roles, or b) the combined total salaries for these roles. Whichever measure is more in accordance with your data preferences.
            • c) In the past 12 months the number of staff days across your organisation which have been committed to attending equality training programmes, whether internally run or with external consultants. (staff days = duration of the training programme multiplied by the number of staff in attendance for the course).
            • d) The contractual cost of any consultants hired, in the past twelve months, to provide any external training or advice on issues of diversity, equality, or inclusivity.
            • e) In the past twelve months, the number of staff days committed to attending conferences relating mainly or exclusively to matters of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. (duration of conference multiplied by the number of staff in attendance).
            • f) The costs of attending these conferences.
            • g) Membership costs the organisation pays for participation in equality charters such as the Stonewall Equality Champions, or Diversity and Inclusion Workplace champions.
            Download our response (.ODT, 180.85 KB) to case FOI 22-055
            Supplementary Documentation to FOI 22-055 FOI 22-055
            Download Supplementary Document (.csv, 142MB) to case FOI 22-055

            If you require any of the documentation on the page in alternative accessible formats, please contact us at [email protected].