Newcastle College opens its doors to North East startups and SMEs to “learn and grow”

Newcastle College is looking to help North East startups and SMEs grow their network and take the next step in their business journey.

The College’s Enterprise Hub, based at its Rye Hill campus in Newcastle city centre, currently has opportunities for ambitious businesses to access flexible co-working space, work collaboratively with students and education professionals, and access a talent pipeline.

Interested businesses can tour the facility and find out more about the opportunities on offer at an Open House event on Wednesday May 25.

With the number of UK incorporated companies having increased by 8.3 per cent throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, the facility, which launched last winter, has been designed to “support local businesses with innovation and growth, whilst bringing education and business together”.

It offers a flexible and low-cost city centre working environment where businesses can base themselves from, working alongside like minded professionals with the opportunity to “learn from one another and collaborate”.

Resident businesses based at the Enterprise Hub can benefit from practical business support and advice from Newcastle College staff, as well as access to training opportunities, advice on apprenticeships and recruitment, and collaboration with talented students.

The facility has support from industry including its first ‘Entrepreneur in Residence’ Paul Lancaster, founder of Newcastle Startup Week, who commented: “This hub provides an opportunity for us to come back from the pandemic and build a new entrepreneurial ecosystem in the region.”

Rental costs start from £60 per month in exchange for sharing a small proportion of time, skills, knowledge and experience with Newcastle College students. This may be through live briefs, workshops, lectures or project work, with support and guidance from college teams.

Grant Glendinning, executive principal of NCG North, added: “The Enterprise Hub is a fantastic space and we’re looking forward to welcoming businesses to see for themselves how it can support their growth with new opportunities.

“This facility has been developed in response to both the boom in start-ups forming over the last couple of years and the shift to hybrid and flexible working, providing a real opportunity to bring education and business together for the benefit of the region.”