ONE of the region’s leading experts in Regional Growth Fund (RGF) applications is celebrating securing more than £4.3m for his clients.

Neville Baldry and his team at accountants and business advisers, Clive Owen & Co LLP in Darlington, has helped more than 50 companies in the North-East and Yorkshire secure more than £54m worth of RGF grants and associated programmes since the scheme was established in 2011.

Both its RGF applications for firms Gestamp Tallent of Newton Aycliffe and TRW Systems in Sunderland were approved last week with grants totalling £4.3m.

Since then, the firm has secured two due diligence assignments which means that Mr Baldry, a partner at the firm, and his team are now involved with more than 25 per cent of the latest round of RGF projects in an area spanning from South Yorkshire to Northumberland.

Across the country, only 50 projects were approved out of 133 applications made. In the North-East, 11 out of 17 applications were approved where as in Yorkshire only four were approved out of 10.

Mr Baldry said: “It’s fantastic to help companies in the North-East and Yorkshire secure the funding they need to expand and to be part of their growth journey.”

Round 6 of the RGF will open for bids this summer.