/Business News Round Up (08/10/2026)
British Business Bank commits £57m to Northern Innovation Clusters
The British Business Bank is set to provide £57m funding to five Innovation Clusters across the North of England as part of a national allocation of £100m. The funding aims to support high-growth businesses aligned with the Government’s Modern Industrial Strategy. The Northern Innovation Clusters are set to receive £17.5m for Greater Manchester, £13.5m for West Yorkshire, £12m for the North East, £9m for Liverpool City Region and £5.5m for South Yorkshire. It will be provided by the NPIF II equity fund managers – PXN Ventures, Mercia Ventures and Maven Capital Partners. The investment is expected to accelerate the growth of innovation-led sectors identified in the Industrial Strategy as critical to the UK’s long-term competitiveness, including clean energy, advanced manufacturing, digital and technologies, life sciences, and professional and business services.
Sick at the desk workforce crisis costs UK economy billion every year
Poor workforce health is estimated to cost the UK economy £241bn in lost productivity annually, according to claims in a new report by healthcare insurer Vitality, with mental ill-health being the single largest driver, as high-risk employees are estimated to lose 30 days of productive time per year. Gen Z is experiencing unprecedented levels of psychological distress at work, with eight-in-ten young workers reporting struggles with their mental health, ten times the rate of Baby Boomers. This crisis is costing businesses roughly £7,000 per employee every year, yet fewer than a third of employers offer mental health support or counselling. Despite the influx of big businesses offering private healthcare coverage as part of an employee benefit, the report showed that only 20% of UK employees are offered health insurance through work, and only 13% are offered health screening, a lot lower than global averages of 33% and 23%, respectively.
Scale-up programme returns for Greater Manchester businesses
GM Business Growth Hub has reopened applications for ASCEND, a 12-month scale-up programme for established Greater Manchester businesses with turnover of at least £1m. The programme, delivered in partnership with KPMG and RBC Brewin Dolphin, provides fully funded support including monthly one-to-one mentoring, workshops and international exposure at Slush in Helsinki. Independent analysis by the ScaleUp Institute found businesses participating in ASCEND achieved average turnover growth of at least 36.1% and employment growth of 13.9%. The programme targets businesses employing at least six people and provides strategic support to help founders step away from day-to-day operations to focus on future growth. ASCEND has supported 73 businesses across Greater Manchester to date, helping companies achieve an average growth rate of 34.8% and getting one in five businesses into new markets.
CBRE to develop business case for central Glasgow Impact Fund
Glasgow City Council has appointed CBRE to develop the business case for a potential growth fund for central Glasgow, exploring how public and private sector investment could work together to address the viability challenges stalling development and unlock new homes and regeneration. The local authority said the work forms part of a wider approach to supporting development and attracting investment, including its ambition to increase the city centre’s residential population to 40,000 by 2035. CBRE, with input from economics, policy and strategy consultancy Mandala Partners, will assess potential funding models that bring together public and private capital to address viability gaps and support development in central Glasgow. Drawing on its knowledge of the city’s property market, its work with developers, investors and public sector organisations, and its experience advising on such impact funds throughout the UK, the team will examine how a fund could be structured and financed.