From skills to support, advice to grant funding, Lincolnshire County Council can help make 2026 your year for growth.
Businesses of all shapes and sizes are encouraged to engage with Lincolnshire County Council’s specialised services to see how our support can help them grow and thrive throughout 2026.
Last year, Business Lincolnshire Growth Hub advisers helped nearly 800 businesses with medium to high intensity businesses support, providing information, advice and guidance on reducing energy costs, applying for funding opportunities, and more.
There are also sector-specific programmes, developed in collaboration with industry specialists. The Retail Accelerator Programme, for example, has been designed to help independent Lincolnshire businesses thrive on our competitive high streets while remaining practical and bitesize to fit around shop-owners busy schedules. While the Customer Service Programme gives businesses actionable strategies to map, refine and optimise every touch point of the customer journey.
Made Smarter East Midlands, administered and managed by Lincolnshire County Council, engaged with 50 manufacturing businesses based in the county in 2025. They’ve delivered grants, completed digital roadmaps and linked established and emerging UK technology innovators with manufacturers in the county to help deliver real solutions to sectoral challenges - maximising efficiencies and increasing profits along the way.
Working within our visitor economy, Visit Lincolnshire help to lead, develop and promote the sector. With toolkits, conferences and support through Visit Lincolnshire Business, businesses can benefit from practical, expert-led information, programmes and bespoke advice.
The flagship visitor facing website VisitLincolnshire.com remains a first choice for visitors and residents alike to find information on locations, events and activities in the county. Over 1.5m homepage views and around 162,000 ‘book now’ clicks generated for businesses in 2025 shows the benefits for the sector.
Another strong area has been showcasing and connecting Lincolnshire’s businesses. Team Lincolnshire has welcomed 29 new businesses as ambassadors since January 2025, and worked to create high-value Lincolnshire-based opportunities to build supply chains, exchange knowledge, and engage with strategic decision making to support growth in Lincolnshire.
The council is also leading the way in developing talent that our employers tell us they need. The Greater Lincolnshire Careers Hub works to strengthen the links between schools, colleges and businesses to provide industry insights and opportunities for young people across a range of sectors in Lincolnshire. Last year 113 schools and thousands of students engaged across the region, with employers helping to showcase careers on offer across Greater Lincolnshire. This helps our our young people make informed decisions about their future opportunities, and keeps local talent local by showing that Lincolnshire is a great place to live, work and thrive.
Alongside working with local schools, colleges, and universities, the council delivers a range of opportunities to develop skills and employability outside of traditional learning methods.
Through the Skills Bootcamps programme, we’ve worked with local employers to create develop in demand skills through flexible learning opportunities across the county. Last year, of the 891 Skills Bootcamps completed, we saw 789 positive employment outcomes.
Since November, in collaboration with 32 local businesses, we’ve developed 96 Skills Champions, who help to develop literacy, numeracy and digital skills by embedding them into everyday tasks. This helps to get learning into local communities, and delivered in a method and pace that’s more relaxed and tailored to learners than traditional education.
Similarly, our adult learning team engaged with over 6,900 learners (19+) looking to upskill, helping to build our residents confidence and employability. There are courses to suit anyone’s availability, skill set, and interests. And, with over 1,100 formal qualifications achieved in 2025, it is a great way to improve a CV.
With the breadth and width of support on offer from the county council, there is something that all businesses will be able to engage with and benefit from.
Make 2026 your year for growth, work with us and let's achieve your goals.