Dene Group set to grow thanks to support.

A MOVE to new premises and the purchase of new kit by a film production company was made possible following an £800,000 investment with support from North East accountancy and law firms.

Dene Group is set to centralise its North East workforce in Newcastle and take on more staff after winning nearly £800,000 in funding.

The award-winning company has collected £500,000 from FW Capital’s Growth Plus Fund, along with £150,000 from the Growth Fund managed by NEL Fund Managers. One North East’s Grant for Business Investment has brought in £100,000, while RBS has invested £45,000.

The £795,000 injection will allow Dene to sign a lease on space at Ouesburn’s Stepney Bank, while it will also snap up both HD and 3D editing equipment and boost its workforce.

Newcastle accountancy and business advisory group, RMT and city law firm, Hay & Kilner, worked with the group and its subsidiaries, including Dene Films, Qurios Entertainment, Metropolis Pictures, Imagine Post Production and IPTV development firm Studio Riff Raff, to help it change its structure.

RMT’s director of tax Sarah Arnold who provided strategic and taxation advice to the Dene Group, said: “RMT is committed to offering its clients the support they need to fulfil their ambitions and what we have helped Dene Group achieve is testament to that.

“We have worked with Dene for several years now and have witnessed its development into one of the most successful TV and film production companies in the North of England.

“We are pleased that some shrewd steps taken by our specialist tax experts have helped it secure the investment it needed to manage the next stage of its expansion and these are certainly exciting times for the organisation.

“Businesses in every sector have found funding particularly difficult to come by in the last couple of years, but carefully restructuring certain aspects of a company can greatly increase its appeal to investors.”

Mark Adams, lead partner from Hay & Kilner, who advised the Dene Group and dealt with all legal aspects of the restructuring and investment said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for Dene to expand its presence and further enhance its growing reputation both locally and nationally.

“We were delighted to work with Steve Salam again and are convinced that Dene will continue to go from strength to strength. Its investment in the latest HD and 3D editing technology is an exciting prospect.”

Dene Group has produced almost 5,000 commercials, corporate films and broadcast TV programmes, including commercials for Sunderland furniture seller ScS, a long-term project with Clydesdale Bank and an upcoming 3D historical recreation of the Vindolanda of AD200.

Company founder Steve Salam said: “RMT and Hay & Kilner have consistently provided excellent support to the Dene Group, which has helped secure this funding.”