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Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are critical to achieving net-zero targets but remain under-engaged in sustainability support programmes. Barriers such as information overload, misaligned offers, and low trust in formal providers limit uptake, while informal, peer-based exchanges are often overlooked. Drawing on a comprehensive set of 47 interviews and two focus groups with UK SMEs and support actors, this study examines how SMEs navigate sustainability-oriented (government-funded) business support. Integrating Social Exchange Theory (SET) with the notion of Sustainable Entrepreneurial Ecosystems (SEE), we show that engagement is shaped by trust, reciprocity, perceived benefits, and power dynamics across ecosystem actors, rather than simply by the availability of resources. Consequently, we propose an exchange-based ecosystem model to explain how knowledge flows within multi-actor sustainability ecosystems, contributing to the SME business support literature by: (1) unpacking the micro-processes inherent in relational engagement; (2) fusing SET and SEE to offer a multi-level lens on SME engagement; and (3) reframing support as a relational exchange problem rather than simply an offer problem. Policy implications include investing in trusted intermediaries, designing flexible and context-sensitive support, and leveraging informal networks to enhance SME sustainability uptake.
Khakimova et al. (2026) studied this question.