Business Support Services for Cheshire and Warrington Growth Hub

East Cheshire and Warrington (ECW) is seeking a service provider to deliver flexible, responsive business support services to SMEs across Cheshire and Warrington. The service will operate within the existing Growth Hub and complement national, regional, and local business support provision. Current business support offerings are fragmented, time-limited, and often difficult for SMEs to navigate, resulting in disengagement and uncertainty. The successful bidder will deliver practical adviser support, follow-up services, business readiness assessments, and clear referral pathways to help businesses take action and progress. The service will also add resource to the National Business Growth Service, ensuring timely and proportionate support. This is an interim 12-month contract with quarterly reviews, designed to maintain continuity during the transition to a Combined Authority-led service while establishing a scalable model for future arrangements. Bidders should demonstrate capacity for quality assurance, relationship management, strong service levels, and innovative solutions. The contract prioritizes value for money, efficient service delivery, and continuous improvement against KPIs and customer satisfaction metrics. Failure to meet performance standards may result in contract termination.