Member Article

Teesside University drives growth in North East

Teesside University has become a lynchpin for economic growth and business prosperity in the North East.

A new report from consultancy group, KSA Partnership, has revealed that Teesside created hundreds of companies and jobs as a result of its collaboration with businesses in the region.

According to the report, the University contributes £20m annually to GVA in the area through engagement with initiatives such as the European-funded DigitalCity Innovation project.

Up to 430 new businesses have been created by Teesside graduate enterprises and DigitalCity Innovation, alongside nearly 600 jobs.

Teesside’s achievements have not been met without obstacles, and a low rate of employment is still an issue, particularly in Tees Valley.

KSA said new startups are essential for the region to grow and become more prosperous, and Teessides overperformance in job and business creation is the one of the first steps towards improvement.

Job creation was 46% higher than original targets, while the number of businesses created overachieved by 42%, and 36% more businesses survived the last year than expected.

Professor Cliff Hardcastle, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Business Engagement at Teesside University, said: “Our entrepreneurial approach of creative problem solving, innovative research and ultimately commercial success is based on Teesside University’s students, graduates and staff working across disciplines - and without boundaries - to deliver transformative enterprise and economic growth.

“The report by KSA shows how vital the University is to the economy of this region because driving excellence in enterprise,nurturing entrepreneurship, and inspiring success is at the heart of our mission as a leading, business-engaged University.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Miranda Dobson .