Lloyds Bank Is Backing Local Business

Tees Valley and North Yorkshire set to benefit from £700m.

Running a business of any size is rarely straightforward and, with 2019 in full swing, it is good to hear that Lloyds Bank is by the side of businesses in the region. In fact, they have committed to lending £18bn to UK businesses this year and a whopping £700m will be going to local firms.

There is little replacement for experience and business nous plus, as the saying goes, ‘in business, if you’re standing still, you’re actually going backwards,’ so it’s important Tees Valley and North Yorkshire businesses are looking to the future and making the most of the help that is out there.

Making sure they are plugged into the local business community can help them stay ahead of the game as listening to others experiences can be invaluable. Similarly, making sure you have the right advisors by your side is crucial.

Here in the North East Sonya Atkins and her team from Lloyds Bank are on hand.

Sonya is an Area Director for Lloyds Bank and her patch covers from roughly Peterlee in the North, down to Scarborough in the South, and across to Harrogate, Northallerton and Thirsk. So, if you’re looking for finance anywhere between those towns in areas such as Middlesbrough, Stockton, Sedgefield, Ripon, Pickering and Darlington, then Lloyds Bank may be able to help.

Sonya said, “Our local Lloyds Bank team works with businesses from start-up through to £100m turnover.” She added, “We’re always here to support established SME businesses and work closely with entrepreneurs looking to take the next step and accelerate the growth of their start-up business. Our team also work with lots of companies seeking to begin trading internationally for the first time as we know this can be a particularly daunting challenge. “If you have either straightforward or really complex lending needs, we can help.”

Sonya’s team of eight financial experts have a combined experience of over 200 years of working in finance. Crucially, when you have that amount of experience, you can just about guarantee that they will have seen everything and either be able to provide help and assistance themselves or know someone else within Lloyds Bank who can.

“I’m leading a team dedicated to making a difference in Tees Valley and North Yorkshire,” added Sonya. “We’re a new team that has been brought together specifically to be available to anyone who needs funding or some good old fashioned business banking advice.” Her team features John Curtis, Senior Relationship Director who works closely with business clients who turnover between £10-£25m. John is accredited in manufacturing and Lexcel too.

Andy Metcalfe is the Healthcare Relationship Manager and a specialist in this area. Lloyds Bank has a long and proud history of working with the healthcare sector so if you are involved with pharmacies, doctors or dentists practices, vets or any other healthcare related business, Andy would love to help.

James Carruthers is the Real Estate Relationship Manager and is the person to go to if you are a property investor or experienced property developer. James can offer a new loan product called a Partially Amortising Loan. The amount of debt that can be advanced compared to a traditional loan is higher due to serviceability criteria being based on largely Interest Only Borrowing. This is really good for customers who are looking to maximise borrowing of £1m+.

Andrew Palmer works alongside Andy as a Healthcare Relationship Manager, and also works closely with other Local Banking colleagues.

John McLoughlin and Stuart Hodgson are Local Banking Relationship Managers. Both are professionally accredited and trained in the manufacturing sector. It is worth noting that Lloyds Banking Group has continued to support the manufacturing sector by launching a £1miilion a year sponsorship of the Lloyds Bank Manufacturing Training Centre to help address the sector’s skills gap in the UK.

Ian Cross and Janet Darke are both Local Banking Relationship Managers, they are the go-to people for entrepreneurs looking to push ahead with their business. They have a wealth of experience across all sectors and are able to support local businesses with a variety of banking solutions.

Alongside Sonya, all of them, are available to meet with local businesses to discuss their finances. They will happily meet with you at your premises to get a clear impression of what you’re up to. Alternatively, you could visit them at their offices in Darlington.

Sonya and her team also work alongside Rachel Kelly, Area Manager for the Local Business team, who looks after start-up’s that turnover up to £3m and Hannah Douglas, who looks after North East businesses that turnover between £25 and £100m.

With all these specialists around, one thing is for certain; Sonya Atkins and her team are backing businesses across Tees Valley and North Yorkshire. “It’s only when we travel around the region that we really see what a thriving and vibrant place this is. We want to help the region prosper and with a lending pot of up to £700million at our disposal, we are keen to use that money to help businesses move forward and secure their futures.”