L-r: Ian Atkinson, Investment Manager at Mercia Fund Managers, Director of Westlinks Joiners and Locksmiths Brian Gilliland and Jon Brunton, Humber LEP Growth Hub Business Advisor

A Hull company which provides construction services to the social housing sector has secured £100,000 funding for expansion from NPIF – Mercia Debt Finance, part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF).

Westlinks Joiners and Locksmiths Ltd undertake major renovation, maintenance and adaptation work for a wide variety of commercial and public sector clients, housing associations and charities. The company has undertaken various major projects including a significant role in the Building Schools for the Future programme. Established in 2007 by Wayne Ede and Simon Jackson, it now employs over 45 staff working on site and at its bespoke joinery workshop.

The funding has already enabled Westlinks to create five new jobs and the remaining funds will provide additional working capital to allow it to take on new and larger contracts, expand its workshop facilities and develop new products. Westlinks was advised by the Hull LEP Growth Hub which introduced it to the NPIF – Mercia Debt Finance team.

Ian Atkinson, Investment Manager at Mercia Fund Managers which manages NPIF – Mercia Debt Finance, said: “Westlinks Services are a skilled and experienced team who have built strong relationships with the major local contractors and social housing providers. The company now has the opportunity to take on additional work that will underpin its growth strategy. This funding will provide the additional working capital required to support the growth in turnover during the year ahead.”

Grant Peggie, Director at British Business Bank, said: “Hull was recently named as the most enterprising place in the UK, and it is great to see that NPIF is helping to unlock the potential of small growing businesses by providing vital finance to support the ambitions and growth of Hull’s entrepreneurs.”

Jon Brunton, Humber LEP Growth Hub Business Advisor at Hull City Council, said:“Westlinks approached the Humber LEP Growth Hub to talk through their business growth plans and the funding options available. After an initial meeting with Brian, I introduced the company to NPIF: Mercia Debt Finance. I am pleased that the Growth Hub was able to broker a successful relationship between a thriving and ambitious local company and one of our key delivery partners in the Humber Region. The Growth Hub will continue to provide business support to Westlinks in the coming months as the company moves forwards with its growth strategy.”

Brian Gilliland, Director of Westlinks Joiners and Locksmiths, said: “We are delighted to receive this support from the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund through Mercia Fund Managers. We’re a growing, ambitious company and this funding will help us turn aspiration into achievement. We’re proudly a Hull company, and the jobs we create will help bring prosperity to our community. That, we reckon, is what the Northern Powerhouse is all about.”

The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.

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