The Aston Centre for Growth works with small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) in the West Midlands to help them realise their growth potential. The Aston Centre for Growth delivered the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses programme. Other SME support programmes include the Aston Programme for Small Business Growth, Minerva Birmingham Pitch Up and Productivity through People. In 2020, Aston Business School was one of the institutions selected to deliver the national Small Business Leadership Programme to support local SMEs to survive and develop growth strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic.