Written by Sal Edwards
We are delighted to announce the shortlist for the 2025 National Enterprise Educator Awards.
We had a very high standard of applications across all the categories and we look forward to announcing the winners at the gala dinner at IEEC2025.
To see the 2025 NEEA shortlist click here.
Written by Lynn O'Byrne
Edinburgh Napier: Bright Red Triangle (BRT)
Bright Red Triangle (BRT), the enterprise hub at Edinburgh Napier University (ENU), has launched an impactful new partnership with Queen Margaret University (QMU) and Edinburgh College (EC) to extend entrepreneurial support to students, graduates, and staff across all three institutions. This collaboration will give budding entrepreneurs access to services such as expert advice, training, workshops, and pathways to turn innovative ideas into thriving ventures. Aligned with the Scottish Government’s National Innovation Strategy 2023-2033 and its Entrepreneurial Campus blueprint, the agreement seeks to build a robust entrepreneurial network across the three institutions. Read the full article for more details on this initiative.
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Leeds Beckett: PGMOL builds on positive strides in diversity with Leeds Beckett collaboration
Experts at Leeds Beckett University – led by Dr Daniel Kilvington, have teamed up with Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) to develop world-leading diversity programmes.Leeds Beckett’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in Sport expertise has developed a pioneering Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP), part-funded by the Government through Innovate UK, with PGMOL. The initiative will build on the positive progress already made by PGMOL and aims to create impactful programmes that will promote diversity and inclusivity from grassroots level to the Premier League and beyond. Read more here.
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Nottingham: New Neurodiversity & Entrepreneurship Education Toolkit launched – seeking feedback & resource recommendations
A new toolkit of best practice resources for enterprise instructors, practitioners and academics who are looking to be more inclusive of neurodivergent students and external stakeholders was launched at the annual ISBE conference on September the 6th. Compiled by ISBE President Dr Lorna Treanor of EEUK member University of Nottingham & Founder of the Charter for Inclusive Entrepreneurship, and Rob Edwards, CEO of the Neurodiversity & Entrepreneurship Association, the toolkit is now available to download for free here. Feedback and recommendations for other resources to be included can be made through the link in the toolkit, or can be emailed to info@nea.global.
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ARU: Enterprise Visiting Scholar Programme launches at ARU
Anglia Ruskin’s Enterprise Academy (AREA) will soon be welcoming visiting scholars from China to share and develop good practice in the delivery of student enterprise and entrepreneurship support programmes. The programme will involve visiting scholars from a range of Chinese universities coming to the United Kingdom (UK) for periods of between six and twelve months and working with the AREA team on various aspects of our entrepreneurship and innovation provision. Visiting scholars will also be tasked with developing new complementary provision, which will be piloted both in the UK and China, and then disseminated across the wider academic community through a number of seminars, conferences and academic research outputs.
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Cardiff Met: Entrepreneurship Champions
Hannah Willis and Isabelle Ford are Entrepreneurship Champions at the THE Award 2024-nominated Cardiff Metropolitan University. In an article written for Times Higher Education Campus this month, they share their top tips for cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset in students. If you’d like to see more about the impact the Cardiff Met Centre for Entrepreneurship make throughout the year, check out their 23/24 impact report. “
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Strathclyde hosts visitors from 12 Thai universities for innovation discussion
In October, the University of Strathclyde welcomed representatives from 12 of Thailand’s leading Universities, together with delegates from Program Management Unit for Competitiveness (PMUC), for a week-long visit focused on building innovation ecosystems. The discussions focused on the role of universities in promoting innovation, alongside public, private and community partners. The participants saw examples of collaborations between Strathclyde and Glasgow City Council, Scottish Enterprise and the Glasgow Chamber of Commerce.Associate Professor Chaleeda Borompichaichartkul said: “We looked across the world to identify new collaboration partners for innovation. What we have seen at Strathclyde shows strong leadership and culture of building entrepreneurship that is special.” Read more.
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Portsmouth: TWIL interventions
“The University of Portsmouth (with Edith Cowan University, Australia) is exploring the role of transdisciplinary work-integrated learning (TWIL) in the development of graduate enterprise capabilities. Literature has focused on work placements/internships. Addressing the gap in literature we will examine in-curriculum arrangements spanning client projects, simulations and consultancy as examples of TWIL. The aim is to develop principles, guidelines and practical strategies (in the form of a toolkit) that can be implemented to benefit students and HE providers in delivering innovative forms of TWIL. Are you running any TWIL interventions? If so, we welcome a conversation. Please email Lynda.povey@port.ac.uk“
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Durham’s Venture Lab Receives £1 million Donation for Student Innovation
Durham University Venture Lab has received a £1 million donation from Dr. Neil Hunt, former Netflix executive and Durham alumnus, and his partner, Julie Raymond, to launch the Hunt-Raymond Innovation Programme. This initiative will offer students a range of opportunities to develop innovation skills, including an 8-week innovation summer school, innovation competitions, workshops, and scholarships. Building on the success of Durham Venture Lab programmes, such as Game Changer, EDAPT, and Enactus Durham, the Hunt-Raymond Programme aims to foster creative thinking and entrepreneurial skills among students. You can read more about the donation via the Durham University website.
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UCL: Founder Resilience Research Report
The 2024 Founder Resilience Research Report has been launched by Christina Richardson, founder at Foundology and Associate Professor at UCL. With views and insights from nearly 400 founders, the report gives the latest snapshot on founder health and leadership, and uncovers the vital importance of founder resilience to startup success. It is filled with evidence-backed tangible strategies for how we can help build founder resilience for both entrepreneurs themselves and as those supporting them in entrepreneurship centres. Download your copy of the report here.
Written by Lynn O'Byrne
Westminster: Cases on Entrepreneurship and Diversity
Cases on Entrepreneurship and Diversity (Edward Elgar Publishing) edited by Dr Spinder Dhaliwal, was launched recently at Westminster Business School. This casebook draws from first-hand experiences to reflect upon different approaches to, mindsets and attitudes towards entrepreneurship. With contributions from highly experienced academics from a variety of backgrounds, it will help entrepreneurship educators and teachers to decolonise business and innovation curricula while reflecting on key academic questions relating to unique entrepreneurial journeys. It’s Key Features include contributions from leading international scholars, practical and useful learning outcomes, discussion questions and teaching notes and true life experiences of entrepreneurs from around the globe to explore both their strengths and the challenges they face with their ventures
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Manchester: Masood Entrepreneurship Centre
The University of Manchester is celebrating its bicentenary this year and across the University, we are reflecting. At the Masood Entrepreneurship Centre (MEC) we have been looking at the impact we have had over the last 20 years. Historical data shows that our start-ups achieve a very high survival rate of >68%. Our database of 426 start-up businesses, shows 291 are still active, with growing employment numbers and attracting significant external investment. In the last 6 months alone, UK-registered MEC start-ups have received £29.5m in equity fundraising, and nearly £220k in grants.
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ARU announces their inaugural Freelancer Fast-Start Programme
This intensive programme supports aspiring freelancers at ARU to become ‘invoice-ready’ in 2 weeks. All final year students and recent graduates, regardless of their course, were eligible to apply providing they had a freelancer skill or offer. This programme will see the 25 participants shortlisted out of over 100 applicants working with industry experts on their freelancer finances, building a digital footprint, designing communications and branding, and launching a sales funnel. Furthermore, participants will benefit from 15 months of ongoing support, budget for tech and freelancing platforms, and a community of fellow freelancers.
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Lincoln: Female Founders Graduate Accelerator Programme
The University of Lincoln’s Student Enterprise team is delighted to have launched its first Female Founders Graduate Accelerator programme. The programme aims to address the critical start-up support and funding gap faced by female entrepreneurs. In the UK, female entrepreneur teams receive less than 1p for every £1 of venture capital investment, a glaring discrepancy compared to the 89p for all-male teams (British Business Bank VC Female Founders Report). The accelerator will support the formation of 10 new Graduate female founder-led start-ups with funding and long-term mentoring support to sustain the growth and development of these exciting new businesses. Click here for the full write up.
Strathclyde: Guest Speaker Rupert Maitland-Titteron
As part of the Entrepreneurial Finance module on the MSc Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Technology the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship welcomed Rupert Maitland-Titteron as a guest speaker on 23rd February. Rupert is the Director of Hive Ventures, a socially conscious equity investment organisation. His insights into how investment decisions for startups are made were invaluable. Startups have little or no financial history so deciding to invest (or not) becomes more of an art than a science.
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Falmouth: A Year in Review
Cornwall Business School, Falmouth University is hosting A Year in Review business conference and exhibition on the 17th of May, 2024, Friday. This year’s theme is ‘Building Resilience’ and different businesses will be in talks with academics to discuss how could businesses build resilience in different ways – from sustainability and innovation to tapping into the right skills. This conference will also exhibit the wonderful projects done by the students and academics this academic year from both business and experience design courses in the form of poster presentations. Please email cbs@falmouth.ac.uk to book a spot.
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UCL: Business School for Science Entrepreneurs
Scientists looking to build new ventures have to take on board a brand new set of norms and behaviours to be credible as entrepreneurs in business. The ambition behind UCL’s new cross-disciplinary MSc in Bioscience Innovation & Enterprise is to empower science graduates to speak the language of business better. Such that they can identify potentially-valuable science, and explain that value to the business actors for whom it will be useful. More multi-lingual scientists, it is hoped, will help kick-start entrepreneurial ambition, and accelerate the processing of scientific ideas into social and economic value.
Written by Lynn O'Byrne
Birmingham: Exciting Updates from UoB Elevate Program!
In November, UoB Elevate Incubator launched its 3rd Cohort of 24 startups, spanning socially conscious enterprises to tech innovators. The event connected alumni, partners, experts, and emerging entrepreneurs, fostering collaborations. The program provides tools, resources, and mentorship to aspiring entrepreneurs, aiming to cultivate a community shaping the future of successful businesses. As we continue to build our ecosystem if you are interested in learning more, then please get in touch via benterprising@contacts.bham.ac.uk
Essex: Student Enterprise
Student enterprise is an increasingly necessary/popular offer at UK universities. More and more students are considering entrepreneurship as an alternative post-graduation route and UK HEI’s need to keep up with demand to compete in an increasingly competitive market. But as more universities create teams to offer this kind of support, it’s often held back from being truly effective based on which department/section it’s based in. Andy Mew, Head of Start-Up Support at the University of Essex, has looked at some of the advantages and disadvantages teams face and how to use these to help them in their respective institute. Read more here.
Falmouth: NEEUK Award Prize Funds enable continued entrepreneurial activity at Falmouth University
50 students attended a business startup evening recently at Falmouth University to hear about the startup support options, including startup 1-2-1s, “Be your own boss” sessions and the MSc Entrepreneurship & Innovation Management course.
The evening was part-funded by the prize fund awarded by the National Enterprise Educators UK to the MSc team as Entrepreneurship Catalysts.
The photo shows international MSc students serving the food they prepared for the event, so testing their “Hurry Curry” business concept, which received great feedback, so helping the development of their business plan.
Derby: Game-based entrepreneurial education
The University of Derby recently hosted a session featuring the latest version of The StartUp Game, created by OneTech. This educational board game offered staff and students an engaging way to understand the startup journey. Players embark on a quest to build a unicorn company, having identified a problem to solve. The challenge intensifies as other founders (players) pursue the same problem. The game creatively simulates building a team and product, capturing the market, raising investment, and equity retention. This session provided a practical insight into the competitive nature of startup development, and how early decisions can have long-term consequences.
Suffolk: Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Eco-system Showcase
Following the success of the Winter Express Start-Up Bootcamp for UOS students and the local community, we ended term with a celebratory showcase event that praised and promoted the local enterprise and entrepreneurship eco-system in Suffolk. Bringing together new and established businesses from current students, alumni and local influencers, this event was a buzz of positivity, opportunity and community energy highlighting the thriving world of enterprise in Ipswich. Raising the profile of extra-curricular support for students curious about enterprise the success of this event has already lead to increased interest and participation base for the 2024 enterprise and entrepreneurship programmes. Enterprise and Entrepreneurship | University of Suffolk (uos.ac.uk)
Kyiv National Economic Uni: “Ideafest”
On December 08, 2023 student business idea competition “Ideafest” was held at the Centre for Entrepreneurship at Kyiv National Economic University named after Vadym Hetman. The first place was awarded to “SportUp’ project, aimed at helping students to do sports online with the help of video lessons with a trainer. The second place was awarded to the project “SaveLife”, focused on providing military personnel with a device for tracking their vital medical indicators. The third place was awarded to the project “VRMandry”, aimed at developing virtual tours into the history of Ukraine and its culture with the help of VR technologies.
Nottingham : YES23 Showcase at the Royal Society
We invite enterprise educators to find out more about YES by joining us at the YES23 Showcase being held at The Royal Society, 6-9 Carlton House Terrace, St. James’s, London SW1Y 5AG on Wednesday 31 January 2024 from 2pm to 7pm. Your Entrepreneurs Scheme (YES) is an innovative global competition developed to raise awareness among master’s and PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, research fellows and technicians about how ideas can be commercialised. Join us to find out more about getting involved in YES24 and to meet the remarkable talent that is brimming amongst our community. Express your interest by emailing admin@yescompetitions.co.uk.
Written by Lynn O'Byrne
Lboro: Connect, Create, Commercialise and Champion
Loughborough University’s enterprise team recently successfully launched our new communities – – open to our students, graduates, staff and external members. Our new communities aim to contribute to Loughborough’s deepening focus and commitment to innovation; allowing members to receive more tailored opportunities based on where they are in their entrepreneurial journey.
The launch event itself facilitated excellent networking opportunities, featuring speeches from our Vice-Chancellor Nick Jennings and two of our Pro Vice-Chancellors: Rachel Thompson and Dan Parsons. As well as showcasing multiple innovative start-up’s from our students/graduates.
Find out more about our communities here.
Westminster: Secured a £5.8m grant from the Office for Students (OfS)
The University of Westminster has successfully secured a £5.8m grant from the Office for Students (OfS) to build innovative training spaces at 29 Marylebone Road, London. The nine-storey building is set to become the UK’s most inclusive Centre for Employability and Enterprise, with accessibility, inclusivity and sustainability at its heart. It is due to open in Summer 2024, if planning permission is granted, and will bridge the gap between education and the business world. These facilities will boost employability outcomes for students and will provide access to university-level learning for employers and the local community. Find out more here.
Baishev: Creative Spark UK Study visit
The Creative Hubs UK Study Visit was hosted by the British Council and Advantage Creative from 20 to 26 November 2022. As part of this visit, 20 professionals from 7 countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia visited the leading creative hubs and university business incubators in Leicester, Birmingham, Loughborough, Coventry, and Derby. The goal is the exchange of experience, and new knowledge for the development of creative industries following the example of the UK. This tour was also attended by Azamat Baimaganbetov, the Head of Technological Entrepreneurship Programs at Baishev University.
Manchester: ARC Pitch Funding brings us closer to achieving One World Together
Dr. Nicola (Niki) Banks from the School of Environment, Education and Development secured £45,000 for her One World Together social enterprise in the ARC 2022 Pitch Final. The ARC Accelerator programme is focused on turning social science research ideas into businesses or social ventures. Niki presented One World Together: a community for Global Citizens where you can enhance the impact of your charitable giving while engaging directly with the local communities and organisations that your funds support in the UK and low-income countries around the world. Find out more
UCL: Become a business mentor for UCL startups
Share your expert knowledge with the next generation of UCL entrepreneurs through the UCL Hatchery Mentor Network. We’re seeking industry and academic experts, as well as former and current entrepreneurs, to guide our startup founders on their journeys by providing personalised mentorship. Find out more here.
UWTSD: PGCert in Enterprise Skills
UWTSD are accepting students to their PGCert in Enterprise Skills. Using the Entrecomp framework, the course walks students through the entrepreneurial competencies directing them to use the knowledge to create a new enterprise. The course uses contemporary case studies ranging from Banksy, Jay Z and Innocent Smoothies to create value in a harmonious way. UWTSD is the first course on the planet to teach using an Open AI powered chat bot. Students can use the insane abilities of the chat bot to know about the world augmented with a dataset crowdsourced from the cohort to give answers to frequently asked questions. Find out more here.
Written by Kate Beresford
Queens: Up to £30k for university researchers to validate business ideas
The ICURe Programme is now open for applications! The initiative supports teams of researchers at universities across the UK to validate their product or service by offering a fully funded 16 week online discovery opportunity. Participants will receive a salary and access to a host of experts to ensure that their project achieves the best chance of success. Deadline to apply is 20th August 2021. For more information and to apply, please click here or email the ICURe team for more details.
Bristol: QUEST pre-incubator open for applications
QUEST is a six-month pre-incubator programme that will kickstart new quantum and deep technology ventures. The QUEST programme of in-person and online training supports commercially driven researchers and provides them with the training and support to create pre-seed technology ventures. Over four years, QTEC has supported the creation of 28 active companies with a combined valuation of over £120 million, that have raised over £56 million in equity, grant and revenues and created over 170 new highly skilled jobs. Applications are now open at this link. Selected ventures start the six-month programme in October 2021. To learn more, please contact the QTEC team.
Manchester: Winners announced for the 2021 Harari Graphene Enterprise Award
Physics alumnus and founder of global flash-memory giant, SanDisk, Dr. Eli Harari has generously supported the annual competition to encourage Manchester University students, researchers and visionaries toward innovation and risk taking based on developing the commercial prospects of graphene and other 2D materials. This year’s first prize winning venture aims to utilise the unique properties of graphene and research expertise in advanced robotics at The University of Manchester to develop an architectural scale-model of a proposed design for permanent human settlements on the Moon and Mars. The second prize was awarded to a company developing 2D materials to reduce energy consumption during wastewater treatment. Find out more about the winners
Kings: Partnership with Santander to support low-income students with entrepreneurial skills
The Entrepreneurship Institute at King’s College London, with Santander Universities UK, is launching a new £300k project to support students from low-income backgrounds with entrepreneurial skills development. The Institute will work with the university’s in-house What Works team of research and evaluation specialists to use cutting edge data analysis and research methods to identify and combat issues that students face in accessing and succeeding at university. The first year of the project will be dedicated to research, which will then go on to inform a suite of initiatives, programmes and changes to existing programming that directly address the challenges identified. Read more here.
Arts: Mayor of London, Entrepreneur Awards
Twelve London College of Fashion students have been shortlisted as semi-finalists for the Mayor’s Entrepreneur 2021. The prize supports the creation of sustainable businesses, while championing ideas that will prime London for a greener future. It also serves to promote entrepreneurship as a viable career path for students and graduates and is delivered by the Greater London Authority with funding from the Citi Foundation. The 5 winners will each receive £20,000 towards their businesses, along with expert mentors within City Hall and the finalists will pitch their ideas to a celebrity panel in front of a live audience. Students received support from The LCF Graduate Futures Team, who support students’ career, freelancer and business start-up ambitions. Read more here.
Written by Kate Beresford
Newcastle: Enterprise Challenge – Sustainability in Science
Bioscience students stepped out of their comfort zone for an afternoon to think divergently to address the provocation of improving sustainability in science. Hosted off-campus, a set of fast-paced enterprise group activities were intermingled with Lego creativity, and food to stimulate both inspiration and teamwork. Coached by entrepreneurial bioscience alumni and enterprise academics, students challenged ‘the way things are done’ with a naïve yet bold ambition. Solutions pitched were diverse, fresh and innovative; from virtual reality laboratory training, to biodegradable labware and re-purposing waste water. Outcomes; novel, disruptive and enterprising bioscience solutions for a more sustainable future of scientific research!
Swansea: Invent for the Planet
Invent for the Planet is an Intensive Design Experience which tasks students with solving some of the world’s most pressing problems in just 48 hours. Led by Swansea’s partner, Texas A&M University, Swansea is still the only UK University invited to participate against another 37 Universities around the world. Students work in teams to develop solutions, prototypes and elevator pitches which are presented to a panel of expert judges. In 2019 a team from Swansea came 3rd in the Invent for the Planet Grand Final in Texas. 2020, was their third year running Invent for the Planet Swansea and they were successful in obtaining £3,000 from Engineers in Business Competitions to award to the winners.
Birmingham Venture Crawl
Replicating the idea initiated in London, the University of Birmingham and Birmingham City University teamed up to run Birmingham Venture Crawl. 34 students from a range of degrees joined together for this epic city trek. Visiting start-ups, co-working and maker spaces they met entrepreneurs from various sectors and discovered support available to them. What a fantastic day with a great buzz! The students were highly engaged asking lots of questions and they networked with each other as well as with the entrepreneurs. They were inspired and encouraged and learnt that “Birmingham is an exciting place to start a business”. Job done!
Written by Kate Beresford
Plymouth: Techstars Startup Weekend returns
The Techstars Startup Weekend (pictured above) returns to Plymouth in November to help budding entrepreneurs develop their business ideas in a special Techstars Global Women’s Edition. Plymouth Startup Weekend Women’s Edition is designed to engage more entrepreneurs and will be focused on empowering more women within our community to lend their voice to innovation. Register your interest in Plymouth Startup Weekend Women’s Edition here! The event is being run by the University of Plymouth’s The Bridge initiative alongside Global startup support company Techstars and is part of the iMayflower project. Find out more here.
Glasgow: Reflections on a university start-up programme published
Colin Mason and colleagues at the University of Glasgow have published a paper in volume 35 (1), 2020 in Local Economy which describes the outcomes of an ongoing small-scale student business start-up programme at their University, and reflects on some wider lessons concerning the objectives, design and evaluation of such programmes and the need to be part of a the wider university entrepreneurial ecosystem. The study also emphasises the need for such programmes to be embedded into the wider local, regional and national entrepreneurial ecosystems. This final point is further developed in an article, “It takes an ecosystem to raise a successful start-up”, in The Conversation.
UCL: 550 PhD students engage in entrepreneurial mindset development
UCL Innovation & Enterprise witness 550 PhD students over 18 months engage in entrepreneurial mindset development through a programme of dedicated extracurricular workshops to help Doctoral students think and act like entrepreneurs by developing their skills to spot opportunities, generate ideas and maximise resources. Three levels of training support the journey from ‘Discovery’ taster sessions to more ‘Advanced’ workshops which delve deeper into the key concepts for early-stage enterprise creation, through a combination of didactic teaching and hands-on activities. The skills learned contribute to the overarching development and employability of the UCL doctoral students both within and outside-of academia.
Wolverhampton: Support secured for ‘designer makers’
The University of Wolverhampton’s Enterprise Department has been successful in securing support from eBay Fire-Up and the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, enabling them to assist a number of student and graduate ‘designer-makers’ to launch their own enterprise. The successful applicants will receive support via workshops, 1:1 consultancy and an award of £1250. eBay Fire-Up will support eight new retail-based businesses. By supporting this sector, and in particular those creating their own products and bringing them to market, it is believed that students and graduates will be able to generate income speedily. Winners of eBay Fire-Up will be announced in May 2020.
Swansea: 2019 impact follows new strategy
In November 2018, Swansea University released its first Student Enterprise Strategy, setting out the vision of the University to become more entrepreneurial in the way that students are taught but also supported outside the curriculum to exercise their Entrepreneurial mindsets, skills and behaviours. In 2019, Swansea University has worked to create a safe, connected and supportive entrepreneurial environment; as a result 40 Students started businesses, 9010 engaged with Enterprise and 50 Staff are championing the Enterprise agenda around the university and their subject areas. To read more about the achievements of 2019 please see the Swansea University Student Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Impact Report
Written by Kate Beresford
EEUK Chair, Gareth Trainer, has written to Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman, to make the case to retain Ofsted’s National Lead for Economics, Business and Enterprise. EEUK is concerned that a decision to remove this role has the potential to impact on the quality of enterprise education and diminish oversight on this important element of pupils’ school experiences.
Read the full letter here:
