Goldsmith’s: Synapse Fair Growth

Introducing Synapse Fair Growth, Goldsmiths’ new creative growth programme and inclusivity toolkit. Our programme empowers organisations to cultivate workplaces that nurture and amplify diverse talent and voices, by supporting them to master growth strategies that champion inclusive practices. Earlier this year, 20 creative and cultural leaders joined the pilot and worked together to explore new models for equitable and sustainable growth. The toolkit which will be publicly available to download soon, provides practical high-impact but low-cost approaches, for unlocking growth and equitable development. Watch a short video on the pilot and find out more here: https://wearesynapse.co.uk/fair-growth. Email synapse@gold.ac.uk for further information.

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Newcastle University launches the Rob Wood Enterprising Futures Academy

Rob Wood, a successful entrepreneur and Newcastle University alumnus, has donated £1.25m to establish the Rob Wood Enterprising Futures Academy in partnership with Newcastle University. The academy aims to inspire and nurture entrepreneurial mindsets among young people, including university students, recent graduates, and those aged 14 and above. It will offer a mix of online and face-to-face programmes, featuring real-life case studies and mentorship from experienced business owners. Read more about the Academyhere.

 

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YorkSJ Kickstart Programme

York St John University launched a new summer initiative, Kickstart Freelancers, creating eight self-employed opportunities for students interested in freelancing. This program offered paid projects in areas such as re-branding, photography, videography, ArcGIS mapping, and interior design, catering to local SMEs and voluntary organisations. Student freelancers gained invaluable commercial experience while delivering professional work to their clients. The initiative not only provided students with a real-world platform to develop their skills but also allowed local businesses to support emerging talent. For more details, visit the YSJ Kickstart Programme.

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ARU Hosts Latvia-Cambridge Venture Camp: Empowering Riga’s Future Entrepreneur

In August 2024, ARU hosted the Latvia-Cambridge Venture Camp, welcoming aspiring student entrepreneurs from Riga and supporting them in developing their business ideas. We were so impressed with the dedication, creativity, innovation and hard work showcased by all participants. While in Cambridge, students attended several workshops and mentoring sessions dedicated to business development and sustainability, and visited local innovation hubs such as the Allia Future Business Centre and St. John’s Innovation Centre. We are proud to support the immersion of Latvian students into the Cambridge ecosystem, and see them gain the confidence and skills to become successful founding entrepreneurs.

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Surrey: Global Social Entrepreneurship

In July University of Surrey ran a global social entrepreneurship experience in Sri Lanka for 24 students from Surrey, Liverpool John Moores and University of Vavuniya, Sri Lanka.  The Empathy Hackathon focussed on understanding the issues faced by communities in Hikkaduwa on the South West coast, with teams of students from mixed disciplines visiting projects such as orphanages, turtle hatcheries and afterschool clubs, organised on the ground by with sustainable travel company Travelteer.  Students are continuing to develop their ideas back in the UK, working with their Sri Lankan counterparts, aiming for real-world impact with 12 months. Read more here.

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Oxford: Oxford Saïd Entrepreneurship Forum

Join the Entrepreneurship Centre at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, for our annual conference, Oxford Saïd Entrepreneurship Forum (OSEF). Held on Friday 8 November 2024, OSEF brings together prominent entrepreneurs, innovators, business leaders and investors for an exploration of entrepreneurship and innovation. Hear keynote speakers’ pioneering stories, join panel discussions diving into entrepreneurial trends, and discover the coolest start-ups coming out of Oxford. You’ll have plenty of time to make new connections too.  Can’t make it in person? You can watch our keynotes on livestream. Register today.

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Suffolk: Make a Difference Business Start-Up Boot Camp

Now in its third year the established Make a Difference Business Start-Up Boot Camp is a beginner’s programme designed to explore entrepreneurial skills in a social enterprise or commercial capacity. We welcomed an energised and varied cohort of students, alumni and heavy interest from external participants this year. Business ideas ranged from Nigerian student food parcels, Ukrainian family-education board games, mindfulness for graduates, a sustainable web development agency and spoken word advocates that promote positivity in Ipswich. £1000 each was allocated to 2 deserving pitchers! The next upcoming ‘Entrepreneurs Festive Bootcamp’ aims to be a maker’s-market success. Find out more: Enterprise and Entrepreneurship | University of Suffolk (uos.ac.uk

 

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Cardiff Met: Times Higher Education Awards

“Cardiff Metropolitan University has been shortlisted in the Times Higher Education Awards in the ‘Outstanding Entrepreneurial University’ category and named as ‘Welsh University of the Year’ in a national league table this week. A holistic approach to start-up support has placed Cardiff Met in the top 20% of UK universities for student start-ups for the last five years, currently having the sixth highest number of students start-ups which have survived beyond three years. “ News Cardiff Met celebrates award and league table success

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Kyiv National Economic University named after Vadym Hetman (KNEU) is launching the second season of StartUp school KNEU!
KNEU continues developing its entrepreneurial ecosystem and creates opportunities for university students who want to implement their ideas or projects. StartUp school KNEU will enable students to become the part of the entrepreneurial community, acquire theoretical knowledge and practical skills of setting up and developing startups from the experienced trainers and mentors, and after completing all stages of training, present their business ideas. The winning team will get a prize of UAH 100,000.

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Cardiff Met: 25 Rising Stars of Business in Wales

Three Cardiff Metropolitan University graduates have been listed in this years “25 Rising Stars of Business in Wales” in the latest edition of the Business Insider Magazine. Mariyah Zaman, founder of Now In A Minute Media, Lara Rebecca, founder of the Keep Smiling Collective and Jake Colley Davies, founder of Caradoc Conditioning all feature within the list of the latest entrepreneurs in Wales having an impact on the local start up landscape – to read more visit Wales Business Insider August/September 2024 | Insider Media

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Keele: Student of the Year Award

Last Friday, 6th September, Keele Business School held its Student of the Year Award.  This award celebrates the top three student consultants from a summer of working on local business challenges for a ten-week period supported by Dr Colin Rigby. The top three students completed projects on increasing company productivity and efficiency, evaluation of public spend, and knowledge transfer for societal impact.  This year’s awards were sponsored by Lila Connect and UK Shared Prosperity funding. Click here to view the video