The Christmas spirit was in the air when BCRS Business Loans held its regular Diners Club lunch for the region’s flourishing business community.

Christmas jumpers, festive songs and a seasonal quiz were all on the menu when guests gathered for the Worcestershire Diners Club networking lunch at Worcester Racecourse in Grand Stand Road on November 30.

The event brought together an assembly of business leaders from a network of legal and financial service providers BCRS is affiliated with.

Angie Preece, BCRS Business Loans’ Business Development Manager, said: “We were pleased to return to Worcester Racecourse for another Christmas-themed Diners Club which saw our team celebrate our recent progress with colleagues and partners in a very enjoyable afternoon.

“Times are difficult for many businesses but BCRS is growing its reputation with a range of lenders, business groups, professionals and companies to support growth.

“Our recent expansion into Wales shows we are building on our progress and we have been recognised for our work, which gives us an exciting future to shape with our network.”

An initiative has recently been expanded to Wales to help smaller businesses prosper and thrive under the fund.

BCRS will manage the smaller loans component of the Wales fund, ranging from £25,000 to £100,000.

FW Capital will handle the larger loans amounting from £100,000 to £2 million, and Foresight will manage equity deals up to £5 million.

Recently, BCRS was awarded the Innovation Thought Leader of the Year – Business at the Innovation Awards in October. This recognises the company’s work to boost innovation in the West Midlands through finance and support.

BCRS’ impact report for the latest financial year indicates that it lent £6.5m to 72 businesses, safeguarding 999 jobs and creating 473 roles.

This added £33.7m in value to the West Midlands’ economy and surrounding region.

It was reported that half of the funding went to the UK’s top 35 per cent most disadvantaged areas.