Fast-growth small business support group Enterprise Nation is set to help thousands more businesses to grow by the end of the year, it has been announced.

The expanding network has agreed deals to extend its pioneering online membership support to fledgling firms up and down the country, via local authorities, entrepreneurial universities, corporate sponsorship and ambitious small B2B firms.

The flurry of membership agreements are expected to take its membership to more than 100,000 by the end of 2017. 

Business membership of the group costs £30 a year and includes online support, expert webinars, masterclasses, access to qualified pay-as-you-go business advisers, discounts on a range of regional sector-specific growth support and networking, and affordable international trade missions.

Emma Jones, founder of Enterprise Nation, said: “We are on an upwards trajectory. We have built a platform that is capable of delivering affordable online business support and pay-as-you-go advice at the push of a button. We have added to that a great line-up of regional business support events and low entry, accessible domestic and global trade missions.

“It’s our unshakable ambition to be the most modern business support provider in the nation bringing growth to the masses - and we have had a great start to the year.”

2016 began on a high with an agreement to create 20,000 new Enterprise Nation members via leading digital communications company O2’s small business customer database.

At around the same time the firm offered an extended package of support for 10,000 of the Government loans scheme Start Up Loan recipients.

Since then Enterprise Nation has struck a pioneering deal with entrepreneurial Birmingham City University, which has paid for 300 of its students to benefit from 12 months’ membership. And in Peterborough, 200 small firms that are part of council-funded Opportunity Peterborough’s Ignite Programme, have been given access to full Enterprise Nation online and offline resources.

Meanwhile Gateshead Council will be offering 50 free full-access membership places to the its growing start-up scene, a deal brokered by Gateshead-based Start Up Loans delivery partner Transmit Start-Ups.  And in South Yorkshire, Enterprising Barnsley, the economic development arm of Barnsley Council has bought up another 150 memberships for its growing database of entrepreneurs, with more in the pipeline.

Partnerships with smaller firms like London tech start-up JobLab and Birmingham-based internet business phone service Nimvelo will also help spread support far and wide.

Enterprise Nation has delivered more than £25m worth of subsidised support so far in 2016 to its existing 70,000-strong membership.