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Early evaluation shows South West Investment Fund is improving access to finance and supporting business growth across the South West

Press release 13 October 2026

  • Independent evaluation finds the fund is performing well and operating broadly as intended. 
  • Strong evidence the fund is addressing regional finance gaps and improving access to finance for smaller businesses.
  • £50.8m invested through the British Business Bank's South West Investment Fund by September 2025
  • 217 investments delivered to 192 smaller businesses across the South West by September 2025. 

An ‘Early Assessment Report’ undertaken by an independent research company (SQW Ltd) has found that that the British Business Bank's South West Investment Fund is helping to improve access to finance for smaller businesses across the South West, supporting ambitious firms to grow, innovate and scale.

By September 2025, the South West Investment Fund - which was launched in July 2023 -had provided £50.8m to 192 businesses through 217 investments, helping to address local finance gaps and increase the availability of funding for smaller businesses.  

The evaluation found strong evidence that the fund is supporting companies that may otherwise have struggled to secure investment, while also attracting additional private sector finance into the region. 
By end of September 2025, across all funds, £0.95 of private sector funding per £1 of South West Investment Fund investment has been leveraged. 

Nearly a third of supported businesses are female led (38%), with a notably higher proportion among smaller loans (46%) than equity investments (24%).

And the most up to date data (July 2026) shows that the South West Investment Fund has invested £75m into 283 ambitious businesses across the South West region and attracted a total £82m of private sector investment. 

The findings form part of SQW's independent evaluation of the British Business Bank's wider £1.6bn Nations and Regions Investment Funds programme, which found the programme is performing well across the UK. 

By September 2025, the programme which includes six funds across England and the Devolved Nations had invested £294m, delivered across 951 investments to 877 businesses, attracting £233m of private sector investment, securing £0.79 of private finance for every £1 invested. The funding is helping smaller businesses strengthen productivity, drive innovation and unlock growth

In the South West, the South West Investment Fund is supporting businesses across a broad range of sectors. To September 2025, Information and Communication accounted for 17.2% of firms supported, followed by Manufacturing at 14.6% and accommodation and food service activities at 12.5%.

The evaluation of the Nations and Regions Investment Funds programme overall found strong evidence of finance additionality, with 81% of surveyed businesses reporting they would either have been unable to secure finance without the Nations and Regions Investment Funds or would have secured funding on a smaller scale or over a longer timeframe.

The evaluation found that businesses supported by the programme are already reporting positive outcomes, including improvements in productivity, innovation, workforce skills and growth. It also found evidence that the programme is helping businesses build confidence in accessing external finance and supporting their future growth ambitions.

Among the hundreds of businesses to have received support from the South West Investment Fund in the region is Exeter-based RoleMapper. It secured a £1m equity investment from the South West Investment Fund, through appointed fund manager The FSE Group, as part of a £2.1m funding round alongside Mercia Ventures, South West-based venture capital firm QantX, and existing private investors

RoleMapper is an AI-powered job levelling, architecture and job management platform, designed to be the evidence layer for pay transparency and the changing world of AI-enabled work. It has used the investment to further strengthen its product, unique AI models and to build its new job levelling solution, RoleEvaluate, one of the only solutions built specifically for the EU Pay Transparency Directive, which aims to strengthen pay equality.

Sarah Hill, RoleMapper founder and CEO said:

The South West Investment Fund funding has enabled us to build a complete portfolio of solutions designed to help accelerate the shift from traditional job frameworks to future-fit, AI-ready organisations. Our new solution, RoleEvaluate, is now one of the most robust, cutting-edge job levelling solutions on the market and we’re really excited about RoleMapper’s next stage of growth as we expand our presence in the HR tech space.

Adam Kelly, Managing Director of Debt & Regional Funds at the British Business Bank, said:

This independent evaluation highlights the important role the South West Investment Fund is playing in supporting smaller businesses across the South West.

The findings demonstrate how the fund is helping businesses access the finance they need to invest, innovate and grow, whilst also helping to attract additional private sector investment into the regional economy.

While still at an early stage, it is encouraging to see strong evidence that the fund is supporting businesses that might otherwise struggle to secure finance and is helping create the conditions for long-term economic growth.

The six Nations and Regions Investment Funds evaluated were the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II, Midlands Engine Investment Fund II, South West Investment Fund, Investment Fund for Scotland, Investment Fund for Wales and Investment Fund for Northern Ireland. 

Download report (.PDF, 5.8 MB)

Further Information

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Notes to editors

About the British Business Bank

The British Business Bank is the UK government’s economic development bank. Established in November 2014, its mission is to drive economic growth by helping smaller businesses get the finance they need to start, scale and stay in the UK. Its remit is to design, deliver and efficiently manage UK-wide smaller business access to finance programmes for the UK government.

The British Business Bank’s core programmes support £23bn 1  of finance to almost 64,000 2  smaller businesses.

British Business Bank plc is a public limited company registered in England and Wales, registration number 08616013, registered office at Steel City House, West Street, Sheffield, S1 2GQ. It is a development bank wholly owned by HM Government. British Business Bank plc and its subsidiaries are not banking institutions and do not operate as such. With the exception of BBB Investment Services Limited they are not authorised or regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority or the Financial Conduct Authority. BBB Investment Services Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. A complete legal structure chart for the group can be found at british-business-bank.co.uk. 

The Nations and Regions Investment Funds are supported by Nations and Regions Investments Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of British Business Bank plc. They are not authorised or regulated by the PRA or FCA. British Business Bank plc and its subsidiary entities are not banking institutions and do not operate as such. A complete legal structure chart for British Business Bank plc and its subsidiaries can be found on the British Business Bank plc website.

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