THE six Merseyside chambers of commerce were among the first to launch the national trailblazer for the Government’s New Enterprise Allowance (NEA) initiative.

The NEA began early last year and is part of a national drive to support up to 40,000 unemployed people across the country to become self- employed.

It was such a success with Liverpool, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral, Halton and Knowsley chambers of commerce that the initiative was rolled out nationally last August.

Customers are referred to the chambers by JobCentre Plus and must have been claiming job seeker’s allowance for more than six months, but must also be serious about becoming self-employed.

The initiative provides mentoring support from an experienced business owner as well as financial assistance in the form of a loan and a weekly allowance for up to six months to help new businesses get off the ground.

The mentor will help the new entrepreneur to write a business plan and answer questions on the day-to-day challenges of self-employment.

One mentor with the Merseyside project said a proven method that helped fledgling firms progress was to try and get rid of any big problems by making them ‘bite-sized’ steps that are manageable week by week.

The latest big milestone for the Merseyside scheme was its 500th customer to launch their own business.

Last month motorsport enthusiast James Hurst, 27, from Wallasey, set up his own RPM Automotive in Birkenhead after he learned of the NEA programme and received help and mentoring through the St Helens chamber.

He said: “I had been looking for work since graduating with a degree in automotive technology. I was doing some voluntary work with a race team which gave me some valuable work experience but was struggling to find any suitable paid work that matched my skills and experience.”

James’ business mentor was Paul McGerty from McLintocks Chartered Accountants and Business Advisors in Birkenhead, who provided support during the early stages of the business.

He said: “I found out about the NEA through an event held at Wirral Chamber of Commerce and Industry that highlighted how local businesses could get involved.

“It has been very rewarding to be able to help someone else get their business off the ground.

“Helping to create more businesses is also a great way of boosting the local economy here in Birkenhead, which in turn is good for our business.”

He added: “Working with James has been great.

“He has put in place a very realistic and achievable business plan and cash flow forecast which has given him a good footing to build the business from. I’m sure he will do well.”