Category: Business growth and finance

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SMEs invited to contribute to North East Growth Hub

Following the North East LEP’s announcement that work is underway on the online business support Growth Hub, SMEs in the North East now have the opportunity to contribute to its development.

We are asking for businesses and organisations keen to play an active role in the development and testing of the North East Growth Hub to sign up by completing a short form.

A Beta version of the Growth Hub will be launched in late spring. Utilising the knowledge and expertise of the North East business community will be key to the Growth Hub’s success and businesses are invited to provide feedback on the ongoing development of the platform.

A small number of core functions will be in operation in the early stages of the project, with extensive further major developments of the Growth Hub taking place between May and September 2015. In the short term the project team is focusing on delivering specific functions that members of the business community can trial over the coming months.

Interested parties are invited to submit an Expression of Interest here. Escher Group, on our behalf, will be in touch with businesses that register interest so that they can be part of development of the hub. We are aiming to build a community of 2,000 active Growth Hub users by September 2015.

SIGN UP HERE

Home / Business growth and finance / Page 26

Co-creation is central to Growth Hub success

In conversation with Dinah Jackson, Business Support lead at the North East LEP

We were delighted to announce the appointment of Escher Group, working with North East-based Cobweb Information and The Roundhouse to deliver the North East Growth Hub.

As a key part of our Economic Plan, the Growth Hub will be the go-to resource for North East companies looking for business support and advice.

The online platform will list the local, national, public and private sector support available to businesses in the North East.

Primarily aimed at people looking to grow small and medium-sized businesses in the North East, the Growth Hub will also be a valuable resource for business start-ups, private sector business intermediaries and those working to provide SMEs with business support and advice.

We are excited that Escher Group have been appointed to build and deliver the Hub. They understand and support our aims and objectives around the project. They come with a wealth of knowledge and expertise in highly developed software services and are demonstrating a real passion for our business support vision in the North East.

Escher Group will be working with local companies, Cobweb Information who are developing content for the Growth Hub and design and digital consultancy The Roundhouse, who are designing the look and feel of the platform, forming a strong partnership of international and local skills, experience and expertise to create an exceptional user interface and user experience.

Feedback and involvement in developing the Hub from the business community is central to making the Hub a success. So in the next few weeks we will be launching a Beta version of the Hub for businesses to try, test and contribute to the Hub content and feature development. At this stage not all the functionality will be developed so its a great early opportunity for businesses to get involved and help shape how the Hub will work.

We’ve already been working with a range of partners on the project and that will only grow as the hub is developed over the coming year. And, whilst we are leading on its delivery, we urge the business community to enrol in the platform and drive it forward, helping us to co-create something of exceptional value to business in the North East.

This is a very exciting moment for everyone involved in the North East Growth Hub. It also marks another positive step towards delivering more and better jobs for the North East.

Home / Business growth and finance / Page 26

North East LEP appoints contractor to simplify business support through digital hub

A world class software solutions firm has been appointed to deliver a flagship digital platform to help revolutionise the support North East firms need to grow and thrive.

The North East LEP has awarded Escher Group the contract to deliver the North East Growth Hub – a comprehensive online platform bringing together digitally for the first time in the region all the data available on business support.

The Growth Hub aims to be the go-to resource for North East companies seeking help – hosting in one place all local and national, public and private sector support for firms. It aims to be the foundation stone of a thriving digital ecosystem for business support.

The hub is a key component of the LEP’s Strategic Economic Plan, to make it far easier for firms to get the help they need, rather than have to navigate their way through the present complex network of support.

Escher Group – which operates in 37 countries with an office in Newcastle – will work with two specialist local partners to deliver the Growth Hub.

Cobweb Information, a Gateshead-based specialist content provider to business support advisors, will curate content for the hub while The Roundhouse, a Newcastle-based design and digital consultancy, will design the hub’s interface.

The Growth Hub is being developed as part of the LEP’s business support programme with funding secured from the Government’s Local Growth Fund.

The hub will:

  • Offer a comprehensive directory of business support and sources of finance – a single reference point where companies will head to for support, enquiries and advice
  • Offer users real-time contact with a suitable advisor who can help by email or phone call
  • Support conversations and networking between businesses, enterprise support specialists and access to finance websites and networks
  • Promote the sharing of information and peer-to-peer mentoring through online community forums
  • Allow users to filter content to suit their needs, fully accessible from mobile devices
  • Provide a gateway to a diary of events, briefings, seminars, conferences and networking opportunities

The Growth Hub is aimed at people looking to grow small and medium-sized businesses through, for instance, improved productivity, marketing or exports.

It will also support business start-ups, and be available for private sector business intermediaries including bank managers, accountants and consultants.

Paul Woolston, North East LEP Chair, said: “Launching the Growth Hub is one of our key aims to help new and growing firms get the help they need quickly and easily.

“This is vital if we want growth in the North East economy to continue powering forward in the way that it has over the past year.

“We have appointed a world class software specialist in Escher Group to help us deliver this hub, a real milestone in the development of a resource all businesses can use to navigate swiftly to the help they need. Working with local delivery partners Cobweb Information and The Roundhouse provides a firm footing in the North East.”

Steve Blanks, Head of Operations for Escher Group in the North East, said: “We are delighted to be working with the North East LEP along with the region’s stakeholder and business community to develop the North East Growth Hub.

“We are passionate about building a digital ecosystem that will connect the region’s businesses to the relevant support to not only help them grow, but make a vital contribution to the LEP’s strategy of creating more and better jobs in the North East.

“We believe that through a collaborative approach, we will be able to develop an exemplar platform for other growth hubs within the UK.”

Marianne Whitfield, Managing Director of Cobweb Information, said: “Cobweb is delighted to be working with Escher to help deliver the North East Growth Hub.

“We’re looking forward to liaising with all the partners involved to ensure that the content on the hub is up to date, relevant and accurate and of the highest possible quality.”

Jason Longworth, Account Director at The Roundhouse, said: “We’re thrilled to be involved in the design and development of a new digital destination for the North East.

“Our priorities are to create a platform which is user friendly, works across devices, delivers information efficiently and makes it easy for people across the regional business community to connect.”

The North East LEP will launch a Beta version of the Growth Hub in late Spring this year, through which businesses will be encouraged to populate and feedback on content and functionality. The hub will have on-going development over the next year to ensure that it meets and responds to business needs.

Home / Business growth and finance / Page 26

Digital Catapult Centre opens its doors to help businesses unlock value from data

The Digital Catapult, a national centre to rapidly advance the UK’s best digital ideas, has opened its new local centre in the North East of England.

The Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley will work with local businesses, universities and colleges, the public sector and two other Digital Catapult Centres across the UK to unlock value from everyday data. It showcases the North East’s increasingly prominent role as a key location for Digital businesses and employment, and will help create more and better jobs, drive innovation and deliver millions in linked investment and funding.

Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley will focus specifically on projects around the controlled delivery and security of data. It will help businesses and organisations from a wide range of sectors to understand and exploit the value of the data they generate and improve their products and services by increasing information sharing amongst businesses and organisations, opening up new business models and generating new revenue streams.

In the coming weeks, the Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley will launch a programme of challenges and events which will create opportunities for private businesses, the public sector, universities and the region’s software community to collaborate and unlock new value around these areas.

Based in Sunderland, the Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley is a partnership led by Sunderland Software City on behalf of the North East LEP and Tees Valley Unlimited. North East Universities are key partners in the consortium providing the opportunity to draw together and use expertise from across Newcastle University, Northumbria University, Durham University, University of Sunderland and Teesside University departments.

The Digital Catapult North East & Tees Valley consortia members will be working with businesses from all backgrounds to understand the data produced by businesses, public bodies and other organisations and to identify new ways to use it to improve products and services and develop business models which can generate value. In the long run this will deliver business growth, enhanced productivity and provide a magnet for new jobs in the sector. This will help to further strengthen and grow the North East’s software sector and cement the region as an internationally renowned base for data sharing innovation.

It is expected this work will help to create at least 40 new software businesses in the region over the next 3 years with an additional 150 jobs within in this sector alone and a larger employment return in the wider economy.

The Centre will also work with University partners to help develop specialist data skills and courses within the region’s further and higher education establishments, adding to the expertise and resources to make the North East at the forefront of data exploration expertise and attracting further academic and business engagement.

Neil Crockett, CEO of the Digital Catapult said: “The Digital Catapult is here to help create new opportunities across the UK and unlock innovation and value from sharing closed and proprietary data. The truth is the most exciting digital innovation is happening in local communities, like the North East & Tees Valley, who are bringing together new ideas, businesses, universities and the public sector. As a national centre, it is important we support and collaborate with these local innovation communities, it is from these local hotspots that we will find the best innovation, create the most relevant products and reap the economic benefit for the UK.”

Paul Woolston, Chairman of the North East Local Enterprise Partnership said: “The Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley is a ground breaking partnership bringing together and sharing expertise between both regional LEPs, our region’s five universities and Sunderland Software City to be at the national and international leading edge in this rapidly growing sector.

“This Centre is yet another vital initiative in our development of the region as a globally relevant and collaborative innovation eco-system. It will provide a hub for innovative problem solving, draw in partnerships, develop networks and build skills. All of these will create the “more & better jobs that the region needs. I congratulate all of those who have worked hard to bring the Digital Catapult here.”

Sandy Anderson, Chairman of Tees Valley Unlimited, the LEP for Tees Valley, said: “The Digital Catapult Centre North East and Tees Valley will help us to drive the digital revolution in our region and ensure that companies and entrepreneurs are able to capitalise on emerging opportunities in the field of data exploration and delivery, with the Digital Catapult providing us with the means, support and knowledge to bring ideas to fruition more speedily and effectively.

“The partnership will strengthen this important sector and help make the North East of England a destination of choice for new stat-ups and inward investment as well as nurturing new talent in the field.”

David Dunn, Chief Executive of Sunderland Software City said: “It is an exciting time to be a business in the North East. Our digital economy is already one of the strongest in the UK and by developing a niche specialism around the controlled delivery and security of data for commercial exploration will open up vast economic opportunities for the digital sector and the North East business community as a whole.

We are delighted to be launching the Digital Catapult Centre North East and Tees Valley which will provide a thriving, state-of-the-art hub for some of the country’s most innovative digital companies and entrepreneurs and en exciting programme of projects and innovation calls, events, business development support and corporate supporter opportunities for businesses from all backgrounds.”

Organisations and individuals who wish to get involved with the programme of activity should content the centre on [email protected]

Home / Business growth and finance / Page 26

Growth for North East exports

The recent announcement from UKTI that North East exports have continued to grow, despite a fall in exports nationally, is fantastic news for the region.

Not only does it reflect the strength of North East businesses, it also shows there’s room to grow the value of our exports.

The signing of the North East Growth Deal will deliver £330m of investment for transport infrastructure, skills, innovation and business support projects. These essential services are vital for economic growth and will deliver the North East LEP’s objective to create more and better jobs.

Last month the North East LEP signed an agreement with UKTI North East that set out how we will work together.By combining forces, we can boost the region’s export performance as well as improvethe turnover and profits of local businesses.

UKTI’s announcement that exports are continuing to grow from our region demonstrates how North East businesses are helping to drive growth and boost the local economy.

Through the Strategic Economic Plan, we’re developing an infrastructure that gives businesses the opportunity to grow and maximise export opportunities.We are working closely with UKTI on inward investment in the North East to create the best possible conditions forthe region’s businesses.

UKTI reported the total value of North East exports in the last yearhas risen by 7.24 per cent, while the national figure has fallen by 3.89 per cent. It also revealed the value of exports from the North East for the 12-months up to the end of December was £12.416 billion, compared to £12.167 billion in the previous rolling 12-month period up to the end of September 2014.

It’s encouraging to see the North East remains the only English region with a consistent positive balance of trade, exports greater than imports, with the figure at £4.45 billion.

Home / Business growth and finance / Page 26

Enterprise Hub Launches in Hexham

Businesses in Hexham will benefit from a new Enterprise Hub following its official launch this week.

The new hub will expand the existing enterprise activity that already takes place at Adapt North East where an individual hub has been set up at the Adapt headquarters on Burn Lane, Hexham.

The new hub compliments the Northumberland National Park Authority (NNPA) hub and they both support local businesses and people wishing to start up new businesses.

The funding has come from the Enterprise Hubs programme from the North East Rural Growth Network, operated by a regional partnership under the North East Local Enterprise Partnership and North East Farming and Rural Advisory Network.

The Adapt hub offers competitively priced small offices and workshop space on flexible rental terms to micro-enterprises, providing access to superfast broadband and free parking. Businesses have access to rural enterprise support services provided by Northumberland College and Northumberland Business Service Limited, (NBSL). Hexham Business Forum and Hexham Community Partnership will also provide further support.

The Adapt hub offers nine new workshop units in a former council highways depot along with four existing offices and a meeting area within the main office complex. It will target businesses of a more traditional manufacturing nature as well as social enterprises. The Hexham Enterprise Hub will be operational from this week. To date, six other enterprise hubs have already been developed and are open for businesses in Alnwick, Wooler and Hexham.

Anthony Braithwaite, Chair of North East Farming and Rural Advisory Network said: “It’s fabulous to see the transformation of what was, not so long ago, a redundant former works depot, into a vibrant new enterprise hub. ADAPT should be congratulated on their vision to take on this challenging site and create a range of workshops for small, including social enterprise, businesses. It’s fantastic news that the Rural Growth Network has been able to assist with the development of two complementary enterprise hubs for Hexham”.

Cllr Scott Dickinson, Business Chair at Northumberland County Council said: “I am delighted to see yet another enterprise hub get underway, especially in the West of the county.  These facilities are invaluable to small and start-up businesses, which are key to new business growth.”

Liz Prudhoe Director at Adapt (North East) said: “Adapt as a social enterprise is delighted to have developed a resource that offers affordable space to businesses and supports economic growth”.

 

 

 

 

 

Home / Business growth and finance / Page 26

North East Growth Deal signed as Newcastle’s Science Central is launched

One of the biggest urban regeneration projects of its kind in the UK was officially launched today by Minister for Universities, Science & Cities, the Rt Hon Greg Clark MP.

The Minister was the guest of honour today at the official opening of Science Central. He was joined by Cllr Nick Forbes, Leader of Newcastle City Council, and the Vice-Chancellor of Newcastle University, Professor Chris Brink, to commemorate the first phase completion.

To mark the occasion, the Minister laid a commemorative stone in one of the site’s newly developed public areas, Science Square. Originally the Elswick Colliery, and later the home of Scottish and Newcastle Breweries, the 24 acre Science Central is a long-term partnership between Newcastle City Council and Newcastle University, as part of the Newcastle Science City initiative.

Mr Clark later addressed an audience of business leaders in The Core, Science Central’s landmark £11.2m building, which opened in November.

Minister for Universities, Science & Cities, the Rt Hon Greg Clark MP said: “Science Central is a unique city centre development that will not only drive scientific advances and innovation in the region; it will create jobs and a thriving community to grow the North East economy.

“I am delighted to be here today to officially open Science Central and mark the first phase of the development’s completion by laying this commemorative stone.”

Nick Forbes, Leader of Newcastle City Council said: “Today is a major step forward in the development of Science Central. The joint investments being made here by the City Council and Newcastle University have provided much needed employment opportunities, firstly by creating and safeguarding construction jobs and skills through the recent recession and now by providing state of the art office facilities in the city centre to attract new businesses and jobs.

“This is all part of our vision for putting Newcastle on the map for new and emerging science and technology-based industries. This unique site is being transformed through our investment, which was unlocked by the City Deal that Greg Clark and I signed three years ago, and the rapid progress made in transforming this area since then is testament to the ambition we have, to make Newcastle the best place in the UK for businesses to locate and create the next generation of jobs for the city.”

In January 2015, Newcastle University unveiled its £58 million investment plan for Science Central, which includes a state-of-the-art Urban Sciences Building. This aligns with the ambitions of the partnership to make Newcastle a smart city of the future, with Science Central as a flagship project bringing together academia, the public sector, communities, business and industry to create a global centre for urban innovation in the heart of the city.

Vice-Chancellor of Newcastle University, Professor Chris Brink said: “Our vision and commitment to being a world-class civic university means we do not just look at what we are good at but also what we are good for.

“Over the next four years, we hope to see Science Central grow to become an exemplar of urban sustainability research, bringing together academia, organisations, industry, democracy and communities to develop solutions that will make a difference to people’s lives across the globe.

“Working alongside policy makers, businesses and public organisations, Newcastle University’s plans will put ‘the first science on Science Central’ – the hub for digitally enabled urban sustainability research.”

Mr Clark concluded his visit by joining Andrew Hodgson, Vice-Chair of the North East Local Enterprise Partnership, in the signing of the Local Growth Deal – £290 million of investment for the region announced in July 2014, and expanded by a further £40.6 million in January 2015.

Andrew Hodgson, Vice-Chair of the North East Local Enterprise Partnership concluded: “The signing of the North East Growth Deal today marks a milestone in the delivery of our plan for economic growth. The £330m Deal will provide investment for our transport infrastructure, skills, innovation and business support projects, and act as a catalyst to lever in substantial private and public investment delivering more and better jobs for everyone and creating long term growth.”

Science Central has been part-funded through the European Union Regional Development Fund 2007-2013 (ERDF) and by the Regional Growth Fund.

Home / Business growth and finance / Page 26

Export boost for North East businesses

Two key business support organisations have teamed up to ensure companies across the North East are getting the best possible help to boost overseas sales.

North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and Government export body UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) North East, have signed an agreement which sets out how the two organisations will work together.

They aim to combine forces to boost the region’s export performance, improving the turnover and profits of local businesses. This will support UKTI’s pledge to get an additional 100,000 UK firms exporting and increasing exports to £1trillion by 2020.

Gill Southern, North East LEP board member and Commercial Director of Wessington Cryogenics; Guy Warrington, UKTI’s Director English Regions and David Coppock, North East Regional Director for UKTI, signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) during a ceremony at the Baltic, Gateshead.

The MOU sets out how the two organisations will increase their work together to deliver events, trade missions, export documentation, and provide support for small and mid-sized businesses.

Gill Southern said:

“I wholeheartedly support this joint initiative between North East LEP and UKTI. The North East has a great record for exporting – it’s the only net exporting region in England and one of a small number of regions to experience export growth during 2014. Wessington Cryogenics has been a customer of UKTI for almost 30 years, taking advantage of its range of support services offered by embassies and the International Trade Advisers. UKTI has really helped formulate our strategies for moving our business forward overseas.”

Guy Warrington said:

“We are delighted to partner with the North East LEP to develop a plan to further exporting from the North East. Through this partnership we hope to apply to the European Regional Development Fund to enable us to access up to £2m extra money in order to promote exporting opportunities for North East businesses.”

David Coppock added:

“It’s my job to ensure that businesses across the North East have the capability and support they need to venture into overseas markets, and this partnership will provide businesses with even more specialist and targeted support.

“We already work closely with North East LEP but this agreement will helps us to formalise this partnership and help us further develop our ability to work together to increase the number of exporters and the number of companies working with UKTI to do so.”

Home / Business growth and finance / Page 26

In conversation with Simon Hanson, Development Manager at the Federation of Small Businesses

SMEs have a vital role to play in the success of the North East economy. They support innovation, develop new skills and provide jobs for local people. Creating an environment where they can flourish is key to the success of the North East’s Strategic Economic Plan.

We, at the North East Local Enterprise Partnership, believe business support has an important role to play in helping SMEs thrive and grow which is why we work closely with business representative organisations to help shape business and enterprise support, access to finance and encourage inward investment for the North East’s SMEs.

We interviewed Simon Hanson, Development Manager at the Federation of Small Businesses about the role it plays in supporting the North East’s SMEs and his views on the challenges facing our region.

Tell us about the FSB and its role nationally and here in the North East

Our mission is to create the best environment for businesses to start up and thrive. Our success will drive the economy and create jobs. We are member-led, so that we authoritatively protect and champion the interests of nearly 200,000 self-employed people and owners of small firms.

Proud of our independence, we ensure the voice of small business is heard by decision-makers at every level of Government – from a local council right through to Brussels. We are a cross-party, non-partisan organisation, and so we work with councillors, MPs, MEPs, Peers and elected representatives from all major political parties. We campaign, but we also bring our entrepreneurial spirit into our work by proposing practical policy changes and being part of the solution.

More broadly, we support our members at every stage of their business journey. We provide them with market-leading business services from insurance and business banking through to legal and tax advice.

What do you see as the big challenges and opportunities facing the region?

The North East has a number of significant amount of opportunities it can take advantage of. We have world leading businesses across a number of sectors which we can exploit further. The key is to focus on those areas where we can scale these up in key sectors like tech/digital, advanced manufacturing and healthcare. We need to get better at communicating that we are the best region in the UK in these sectors and the potential we have.

The big challenge that our members are facing is the impact that increasing late payments is having on cashflow. The total amount owed to small businesses now stands at £44bn with many waiting at least 8 working weeks beyond payment terms to be paid. Our members are also reporting that finding suitably skilled staff is becoming more challenging. We’re seeing this in the demand for higher level skills and basic skills. This is holding back both business investment and job creation across the region.

Where will the FSB be focusing its efforts in 2015?

We’re focused on getting the issues members have raised for the FSB business manifesto for the General Election listened to and acted on. Broadly our manifesto will help any future Government deliver a sustained economic recovery, rebalance the economy, create high quality jobs and full employment, make all markets work better and lower the cost of business.

Our Manifesto is not a list of ideas that will increase public expenditure. The vast majority require zero cost to the Exchequer; where there are costs, such as investment in infrastructure, these will be more than covered by the long-term economic benefits. We will be hosting business focused hustings event across the North East to ensure our members get their voice heard. After the Election we will be lobbying the new Government to act on the issues raised in our manifesto.

What should your members expect in the run up to the General Election?

They’ll expect a lot of attention from all the candidates vying for a seat in the North East. They know that they are an important source of support for all aspiring MPs and will be courted effusively. For our members the most important thing is that the business issues they are facing are acted on. All candidates can show they understand this and will act on it by backing our #ibacksmallbusiness campaign.

Name one thing that you would like everyone to know about the North East.

We are the best region in the world to start, develop and grow a business in.