19.04.04
Bluebird Bus Company Spreads Its Wings With Help of Finance Cornwall

A new transport company in Roche is spreading its wings with a major expansion into local school transport thanks to investment from the Truro-based business finance company Finance Cornwall.

Finance Cornwall is a £20 million investment fund backed by £9 million from the Objective One European Regional Development Fund.

The Bluebird Coach and Bus Company, which started life just six months ago as a car hire business, has expanded to provide daily school bus and shopper services thanks to a £141,300 investment supported by £25,000 from Finance Cornwall.

The business was set up last September by Jo Barnardo when she bought the local Bluebird car hire business, and with 10 years of experience in the transport industry, she quickly saw the potential to expand.

Jo now has a fleet of four coaches and two mini-buses, plus her original car hire business, and has won a number of new contracts. Her company now operates daily school contracts for Penrice School and Cornwall College and transport for excursions for several local schools. Bluebird also provides an Asda shopper bus for customers from the Truro, Camborne and Helston areas to get to the Falmouth store.

The company currently employs five full-time staff to drive and service vehicles and intends to recruit three more staff in the next year.

The investment from Finance Cornwall has been used as working capital to increase the size of the fleet and to buy new equipment for the company's maintenance garage. Other funders included Lloyds TSB and a hire purchase company.

Jo Barnardo said: "I am delighted with the way that my new venture has really taken off. I identified early on that there was a good market for the services that I wanted to offer but I needed to secure the necessary bus fleet and extra drivers before I could realise my ambition. Finance Cornwall recognised the potential of my business plans and had the faith in me to provide the finance to get the new side of the business off the ground. Since their investment I've been able to fill in the other parts of the funding jigsaw and the bus and coach hire side has come along really well. I've secured some really good contracts and am looking forward to building a bright future for the business."

Finance Cornwall Fund Manager Jeff Lenihan said: "New businesses like the Bluebird Coach and Bus Company can often struggle to secure all of the funding they need because they don't have a proven track record. This is exactly where Finance Cornwall can help as we often provide the missing piece of finance that allows a commercially viable project to move ahead. We look at the potential of the company and not just the history as is often the case with the traditional lenders."

Finance Cornwall is based in Truro and offers a complete financial solutions package for local businesses. It provides direct access to £20 million of its own funds, combined with access to expert business planning and ongoing support.

In the last 18 months it has invested more than £1.5 million in 22 Cornish businesses, helping to attract an additional £9.5 million of funding from the private and public sector.

Finance Cornwall's funds are administered by Finance Cornwall Fund Managers Ltd.

To find out more visit www.financecornwall.co.uk

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Editor's notes:

Finance Cornwall background

Finance Cornwall is a £20 million investment fund backed by £9 million from the Objective One European Regional Development Fund.

For more information contact

Jo Barnardo
Bluebird Bus and Coach Company
01726 890085

Jason Clark
Deborah Clark & Associates
01872 276276
07980 834368

Robin Teverson
Finance Cornwall
01872 272288
www.financecornwall.co.uk

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Sue Wolstenholme
Objective One Communications
Objective One Partnership Office
Castle House
Pydar Street
Truro TR1 2UD
Mob: 07973 813647
Tel: 01579 370991

lmroberts@cornwall.gov.uk

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