Key takeaways

• It’s a guarantee, not a grant; businesses still repay 100% in full, with interest.
• July 2026 changes: loan terms up to £1.1m now run up to 10 years (was 6), turnover threshold rose to £54m (was £45m).
• Max facility stays at £2m, applied for only through accredited lenders, never directly through government.
• An old Bounce Back Loan or CBILS doesn’t automatically rule a business out; if taken before 30 June 2024, they may still qualify.
• Covers term loans, asset finance, invoice finance and overdrafts, relevant across materials, vehicles and working capital.

The Growth Guarantee Scheme (GGS) just got a lot bigger. In July 2026, the government increased its lending capacity by £6.5bn, extended maximum loan terms from six to ten years, and raised the turnover threshold for eligible businesses from £45m to £54m.

For scaffolding contractors looking to fund materials, vehicles or working capital, this is one of the most useful government-backed schemes available right now, and most businesses that qualify have never heard of it.

Speak to a specialist about the Growth Guarantee Scheme

What is the Growth Guarantee Scheme?

The Growth Guarantee Scheme is a government-backed lending scheme run by the British Business Bank. It gives your lender a 70% guarantee on the loan, which reduces the lender’s risk and makes it easier for growing businesses to access finance, including businesses that might not qualify for a standard commercial loan on their own.

It is not a grant. You still repay the loan in full, with interest, and you remain fully liable for the debt. What the guarantee does is sit behind your lender, not you, giving them the confidence to say yes to more applications.

The scheme covers several types of finance, including term loans, asset finance, invoice finance and overdrafts, arranged through accredited lenders rather than directly from the government.

What changed in July 2026?

The Chancellor announced a significant expansion of the scheme, unlocking an additional £6.5bn of lending over the next four years. Three changes matter most for scaffolding contractors:

1. Longer loan terms

Loans up to £1.1m can now run for up to 10 years, up from a previous maximum of six. A longer term spreads repayments further, easing monthly cash flow pressure on a growing business.

2. Higher turnover threshold

Businesses with turnover up to £54m can now apply, up from £45m. This brings a wider range of established contractors into scope.

3. More available lending

The extra capacity means more accredited lenders have room to approve GGS-backed borrowing, rather than the scheme being tightly rationed.

The maximum loan size remains £2m (£1m for businesses within the scope of the Northern Ireland Protocol), and the 70% government guarantee on the loan is unchanged.

Am I eligible?

To qualify for the Growth Guarantee Scheme, your business generally needs to:

• Be trading in the UK, with more than half of turnover coming from trading activity
• Have annual turnover of £54m or less (on a group basis, where applicable)
• Have a viable business proposition, in the lender’s assessment
• Not be in relevant insolvency proceedings or otherwise classed as a business in difficulty

There is no minimum trading history set by the scheme itself, though individual lenders may apply their own criteria on top. A small number of business types are excluded, mainly banks, insurers, public sector bodies and state-funded schools, none of which affects a scaffolding contractor. Eligibility is ultimately assessed by the lender, not the government directly.

Already had a Bounce Back Loan or CBILS? You may still qualify.

A lot of established contractors assume they have already used up their government-backed borrowing during the pandemic and rule themselves out without checking. That is not automatically true.

If your business took out a Bounce Back Loan, CBILS, CLBILS or the original Recovery Loan Scheme before 30 June 2024, you can still apply for GGS, provided you meet the standard eligibility criteria, and the lender considers any additional borrowing affordable.

It is also worth knowing that CBILS, CLBILS and Recovery Loan Scheme facilities taken out before 30 June 2022 do not count towards your subsidy limit at all. A Bounce Back Loan may count, depending on how it was originally classified; your lender can confirm this as part of the application.

Is there a limit on government-backed loans?

There’s a limit on the total government-backed support a business can receive (currently £315,000 over three years), but it’s rarely reached in practice, and your lender checks this as part of the application anyway. If you’ve had other government-backed loans recently, other than the ones mentioned above, just mention it when you apply.

What this looks like for a scaffolding contractor

Take a contractor turning over £2.8m who wins a £340,000 contract requiring £120,000 of system scaffolding, with the first payment due 90 days after materials go on site. Wages, fuel and transport still need paying every week in the meantime, before a penny of that contract comes back in.

A GGS-backed asset finance facility can fund the materials directly, spreading the cost over a longer term than a standard commercial facility might allow, rather than the business absorbing the full cost upfront or relying on a hire arrangement that can quietly become a permanent overhead if the job overruns. The same structure applies to a vehicle finance deal, or a business loan covering wages and day-to-day costs while payment is outstanding. The 70% guarantee behind the lender is often what makes a facility like this possible in the first place for a business this size.

How do I apply for a GGS-backed loan?