Enterprise Graduations at Liverpool Science Park
25 university graduate businesses have been welcomed to the park’s Enterprise Centre since it launched 18 months ago and now three of these companies have taken the next step and moved from the open plan hot desk environment into their own dedicated office space following rapid growth.
LSP, in partnership with its owners University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University, launched the offer for new and recent graduates who had finished university and set up their own businesses in the science and technology sector.
The 24/7 facility provides tenants with everything they need to grow their business, including professional office space shared with like-minded companies, fostering a supportive environment to grow and develop their ideas, plus a registered business address and dedicated reception at a cost of £18 per week.
One graduate enterprise success story Spark Revolutions which was founded by three Liverpool graduates and has nearly tripled in size since November 2011 following a succession of client wins.
The technology company, which specialise in four key areas: development, design, tuition and consultancy, moved to the centre after being introduced to LSP via the University of Liverpool’s Management School.
The Spark Revolutions team, made of official Apple consultants, moved into a 250 sq ft office in April and has since grown even further after taking on new members of staff, taking the team to eight. This means they will be making another move to a 579 sq ft office in the park by July 2012.
Speaking of the relationship with LSP, Phil Hauser from Spark Revolutions said: “The team at LSP has been brilliant from start to finish - it has been little things like acknowledging and helping us when we became too big for the Enterprise Centre to supporting and introducing us to other tenants, resulting in collaborations on several projects. The facilities here are great and we can’t fault them on anything.”
LSP continues to take applications from up and coming graduate businesses for the Enterprise Centre via its website, and its doors are open to all graduates, not just those from Liverpool Higher Education Institutions. Chris Musson, Chief Executive of LSP said: “We don’t want to exclude graduates from other universities who return to Liverpool to start their business, and continue to welcome applications from graduates across the UK.
“We are extremely proud of the companies that are growing within the centre and there’s an increasing recognition of the value of bringing business and academia together and also in universities preparing students for careers in business. It’s been excellent to see young companies flourish alongside their peers and through collaborative projects and also the support of our in-house team.”
Liverpool City Council cabinet member for Employment, Enterprise & Skills Cllr Nick Small, who sits on the Liverpool Science Park board, said: “It’s really important for Liverpool to increase graduate retention and increase the number of homegrown businesses. Liverpool Science Park works to do both of these things, and the success of its graduate companies is fantastic news for the city.”
University of Liverpool Vice-Chancellor and LSP chair, Professor Sir Howard Newby, said: “Liverpool’s universities produce high-calibre graduates with skills that can support important areas of our economy. It is vital that we work together to retain that talent and expertise in the City Region and support our graduates with opportunities for innovation and enterprise.
“Our partnership with Liverpool Science Park and Liverpool John Moores University is helping graduate businesses to turn their ideas into sound commercial ventures that are ripe for investment. The success of this exciting programme should encourage even more of our outstanding graduates to work in Merseyside.”
Echoing LSP’s commitment to linking business with academia, Spark Revolutions is looking at local universities for its recruitment.
For more information about the Enterprise Centre contact Vicky Brown at Liverpool Science Park on 0151 705 3400 or email Vicky.brown@liverpoolsciencepark.co.uk.
About Liverpool Science Park
• Liverpool Science Park (LSP) was created as a Special Purpose Vehicle in 2002 by four key partners, Liverpool City Council (LCC), Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU), the University of Liverpool (UoL) and the North West Development Agency (NWDA).
• LSP is a not for profit company limited by guarantee, with LCC, LJMU and UoL as its three shareholders.
• The further growth of LSP and its supporting infrastructure has the potential to be the catalyst for the continued delivery of commercial success and economic growth, co-ordinated with other projects in Liverpool, through the provision of specialist accommodation as well as support for companies from start up to flotation.
• LSP will focus particularly on those areas of the market, which will benefit from LSP's community of likeminded knowledge based companies, and this includes graduate startups, university spin outs and companies requiring laboratory space.
• The LSP Board has set itself the goal of being a major national science park with international aspirations. To achieve this, it has recognised that it will need to create a science park with more than 500,000 sq ft of fit for purpose accommodation. LSP intends to provide an environment, which allows even the youngest of companies to benefit from its totally flexible offer:
• Easy in/easy out policy - support ranging from the provision of a postal address through to 5,000 sq ft of office space over virtually any period of time, 24/7 access and with the provision of state of the art IT capabilities.
• Gateway policy - ensures that only those companies engaged in the knowledge economy are able to be tenants. This is to ensure that similar companies have the opportunity to mix together and to create a community of like-minded companies.
• Outside business - investors who are new to the region, or to the country, are able to dip their toe in the market to see how well the city region's business and knowledge resources match their business offer. The LSP offer could also appeal to more established companies from outside the area which might be looking to establish a presence in the city region or to act as a listening post to allow them to stay close to Liverpool developments.
• Laboratory space - to support the key elements of the city's knowledge economy is a key part of Phase 1 and the creation of 5,000 sq ft of laboratory space in ic2 goes some way to meeting identified demand. Additionally, ic3 will provide both biology and chemistry laboratories for this purpose.
For more information about the park and its facilities visit www.liverpoolsciencepark.co.uk or call 0151 705 3400.
Liverpool Knowledge Quarter
is part of Liverpool Knowledge Quarter, a dynamic hub of world-class knowledge and expertise at the heart of the city region’s economic transformation.
The Quarter is the focus of investment programmes worth £1 billion and combines cutting edge technology firms with globally renowned research institutions. It is home to Liverpool’s three universities, the Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool Science Park, Merseybio and the National Oceanography Centre -amongst others.