Podcast: Small Business Support: Can it be Effective, Highly Visible and Respected?

In our latest podcast, Dr Juliane Schwarz talks to Professor Mart Hart, Deputy Director of the Enterprise Research Centre and Professor of Small Business and Entrepreneurship at Aston Business School, about business support in England. This podcast was inspired by the Birmingham Economic Review 2022. The annual Birmingham Economic Review is produced by City-REDI, University … Continue reading “Podcast: Small Business Support: Can it be Effective, Highly Visible and Respected?”

UK Shared Prosperity Fund: Perspectives on Allocations in the Midlands

Writing for the Midlands Engine Observatory, Charlie Hopkirk examines whether the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will provide a sufficient replacement for the European Structural Fund in the Midlands. Launched in April, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) is a Government-allocated fund which is intended to reduce inequalities between communities. UKSPF is being allocated nationally as … Continue reading “UK Shared Prosperity Fund: Perspectives on Allocations in the Midlands”

Business Support: Referrals to Regional Universities by the GBSLEP Growth Hub

In this blog, Freya Williams, Alice Pugh and Juliane Schwarz examine the referral of businesses by the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP) Growth Hub to universities in the West Midlands, including what sectors they come from, the size of businesses and what kind of support they receive.  GBSLEP Growth Hub The Greater … Continue reading “Business Support: Referrals to Regional Universities by the GBSLEP Growth Hub”

The Realities, Challenges and Strengths of the External Funding Environment at LEP Level

When I joined City-REDI in October, I was seconded 50% of my time to the Smart Specialisation Hub in Islington for six months. The Hub provided analysis to improve local and national understanding of innovation capabilities, benchmarking innovation activity across Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs). Established in 2010 by the then Department for Business, Innovation and … Continue reading “The Realities, Challenges and Strengths of the External Funding Environment at LEP Level”