Enterprise UK Blog

Stuart Varrall of Fluid Pixel has won the coveted DediPower Digital Award 2010. The trophy was presented by Rt Hon Stephen Timms, MP, Minister for Digital Britain, at a special ceremony in London, last week.

Fluid Pixel, a business offering innovative applications, games and interfaces for mobile phones, the web and desktops won the first prize worth over £50,000, after entries from across the UK flooded in. The Rt Hon Stephen Timms, MP, Minister for Digital Britain, Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), handed over the DediPower Digital Award trophy at the European e-Skills Week opening UK conference on Monday 1st March. He said: “It is always a pleasure to recognise and see business ideas rewarded, and e-skills week is the perfect background to learn about new and innovative ideas.

‘IF WE CAN, YOU CAN’ Challenge launches for 2010

Today marks the launch of the third ‘If we can, you can’ Challenge, a region-wide competition set to re-ignite and celebrate North East England’s entrepreneurial spirit.

The  Challenge calls upon any individual who is thinking of starting a business, running their own business or looking to grow their existing enterprise to enter the Challenge and log on to tell their story – adding to a growing online community of entrepreneurs, each at different stages of their journey. The campaign is built on the Entrepreneurs’ Forum’s well established principles of peer-to-peer support, where personal stories and guidance from experienced current business owners help nurture budding and existing entrepreneurs.

I risked life and limb yesterday as I strapped on ice skates for the first time ever to celebrate the culmination of this year’s Second Chance programme with Team Northumbria, from Northumbria University.

The Second Chance scheme offers disadvantaged adults the opportunity to participate in a structured sport and education programme, whilst also integrating with similar individuals from across the region. Activities are run by the 5 North East Universities through the SUNEE (Sport Universities North East England) scheme, giving their students the chance to help co-ordinate events and get real hands on experience in their field.

That's one big generator!

A NEW chapter is set to unfold in Sunderland’s maritime history as the first of a new generation of wave-powered energy generators sets sail.

The first tidal generator to be manufactured at the site of the city’s former shipbuilding yards is now complete and will be shipped to Humberside where it will be put into action in a series of trials.

The million-pound Neptune Proteus tidal stream demonstrator has been built on Wearside by family- run Wear Dock and Engineering.

There were some confused faces around the Nissan Manufacturing Plant yesterday as their site was invaded by a Polar Bear! Lucky for them this one was harmless and in fact wanted nothing more than to tell them all about Global Warming and protecting the environment.

Percy the Polar Bear is the main character in a series of locally set books developed by Northumberland Church of England School. The books use familiar local surroundings to hammer home the importance of looking after the places we love living in for the next generation.

Social Enterprise day was celebrated in Sunderland’s National Glass Centre today with Mutual Inspiration’s Social Enterprise, Collaboration and Sustainability Conference.

Around 50 delegates from the North East social enterprise arena descended on the fabulous venue to discuss such topics as:

-The recession, social enterprise opportunity or challenge?

-Finance and franchising social enterprises

-Opportunities for social enterprise in the emerging “green sector”

-Idea generation and sustainability for social enterprises

The conference took an open space theme with the delegates themselves formulating the agenda with their own topics of interest and concerns.

As I set out on the road yesterday with my lovely colleague Eimear, visiting us from London, I was prepared for a long, busy day, of Global Entrepreneurship Week event reporting.

Boy were we pleasantly surprised when at our last event of the day, feeling a little weary to say the least, we were offered some complimentary stress relief!

Our final stop of the day was Hexham for the launch of a brand new enterprise, Sound Touch, run by Johanna Sheehan. The company uses a combination of sound vibration and massage techniques to create a sense of calm and relaxation.

North East school children were working hard yesterday thinking of innovative ideas to market Newcastle United football tickets for Grade C matches during the long winter months in the Championship.

Students at King Edward VI in Morpeth were busy coming up with Loyalty Card schemes, competitions, concerts, BOGOF offer ideas, all in order to answer the brief set by Sam McLoughlin in his Enterprise Academy Challenge!

Children in a number of cities across the UK are taking part in this challenge to come up with the most creative ideas to market and sell tickets to the matches which traditionally don’t sell out, whether this is due to poor opposition or during the run up to Christmas.

What do you get when you mix some generous local business owners, some inspirational enterprise coordinators, some very tolerant teachers and a whole bunch of enthusiastic school children? Well in Wansbeck; it’s called the Make £5 Grow Challenge and it’s all part of the Wansbeck Enterprise Education Network’s Global Entrepreneurship Week festivities!

This year around 50 local businesses are sponsoring hundreds of school children £5 each and they have just 4 weeks to make as much profit as possible. Sounds simple!

It’s 10:30am on Monday morning, the first day of Global Entrepreneurship Week and I am on my way to the North East launch event, The Secret to Global Sales on a Shoestring. Set at the Baltic Gallery of Modern Art the setting is perfect for great photos, PR and a general buzz of excitement from all of the guests.

Unfortunately Mother Nature has other ideas and has proceeded to drench the city with a steady torrential downpour of rain resulting in accidents on the two major routes into the city and floods causing other delays elsewhere.

Today I met Lindsey Dunn from the Wansbeck Enterprise Education Network at Guide Post Middle School in Northumberland for a unique meeting between 25 teachers and a host of local business owners. This was the first meeting of many between the two parties as they embark on the Global Entrepreneurship Week Make £5 Grow Challenge.

The project sees school children aged 7-17 from the Wansbeck area given £5 to either go it alone, or work with friends to turn their £5 into as much profit as possible. The money has been donated by nearly 50 local small businesses all keen to encourage an entrepreneurial spirit in their young people.

Nominations for the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion 2010 have now opened.  Lord Mandelson suggests that ‘recipients of The Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion (QAEP) are outstanding individuals who are inspiring tomorrow’s entrepreneurs and giving them the skills and attitudes they need to succeed’ and that ‘they hold the key to unlocking Britain’s entrepreneurial talents and they deserve all the praise and thanks we can give them.’

Last year’s winners of the Award included Make Your Mark Ambassador Jamie Murray-Wells and longstanding MYM friend Charles Cracknell, as well as others including lecturers, teachers and practitioners. If you feel that someone deserves recognition for their role in promoting enterprising skills and attitudes then nominate them now!

If you are we want your feedback.

Make Your Mark is currently in the process of developing a student alumni scheme for young people who have taken part in the fabulous MYM activities such as Make Your Mark Challenge, Make your Mark Club and Make Your mark with a Tenner.

This is going to be the chance to support young people to make their ideas happen. If you are a teacher or a student take a few minutes to fill in the relevant questionnaire

Questionnaire for tutors

Questionnaire for students