The search is on for the most enterprising place in Yorkshire & Humber

26/02/2009

The search is on for the region’s enterprise success stories with the launch of the Enterprising Britain 2009 competition.  Lord Mandelson, Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, is calling for hotspots of innovation – locations which are tackling the economic downturn head on by creating jobs, boosting local businesses and nurturing budding entrepreneurial talent – to step up and show why they deserve to be named the Yorkshire & Humber’s most enterprising place.

The Enterprising Britain competition, a key part of the Government’s drive to create the right conditions for enterprise across the UK, seeks out areas of enterprise excellence from across the country – villages, towns, cities and neighbourhoods which have embedded a culture of enterprise that supports and encourages their entrepreneurs and businesses, helping them to survive the downturn and emerge stronger on the other side. 

The 2009 competition is being launched in Scarborough, North Yorkshire; the winner of last year’s hotly contested competition.  Following its Enterprising Britain success, the seaside town’s enterprise credentials have now been recognised on an international scale by the European Enterprise Awards, where it is up against countries including France, Latvia and Norway on the shortlist for the Entrepreneurship Promotion category.  The results will be announced at an awards ceremony in Prague in May.   

The Scarborough Renaissance Partnership – a coalition of local businesses, residents and council representatives – have transformed the declining seaside town into a shining example of enterprise achievement, stamping out seasonal unemployment, creating new industry sectors and attracting more than £200m of private sector investment along with hundreds of new jobs.  It reduced economic dependence on the declining tourism and fishing industries, capitalised on the physical regeneration of the harbour side, kick-started a boom in business start-ups and introduced Freebay Wifi along the sea & harbour front, making the internet accessible to all. This year, Enterprising Britain is encouraging businesses-led projects which have transformed their local communities to enter the awards and gain recognition for their fantastic work.

Secretary of State for Business, Lord Mandelson said:

“Enterprise is a long-term investment for the future and crucial for success in the current economic climate. In a downturn, it is more important than ever that entrepreneurs are supported and have the confidence they need to develop their ideas.

"Enterprising Britain allows communities to share their experiences of innovation, inspire others and drive forward enterprise.”

Linda Pollard Deputy Chair of Yorkshire Forward and Chair of the Enterprising Britain Regional Selection Team said:

“Now more than ever, we need to tap into examples of what is working in places across our region, in terms of supporting, encouraging and maintaining enterprise.  Entering the Enterprising Britain competition is your chance to shout about what you’ve achieved and to ensure that other small and medium sized businesses, communities and enterprise projects can learn from your successes.  The competition helps highlight and spread best practice in enterprise across the UK and I would encourage all the innovative projects out there that are helping to make Yorkshire and Humber an even better place to live and work, to enter and have a chance at being crowned the UK’s enterprise champion.” 

John Burroughs of Scarborough Council said of Scarborough’s Enterprising Britain 2008 win:

“Winning Enterprising Britain has put us on the map and raised our profile.  People now realise that Scarborough is more than just a seaside resort; it’s a hub of culture and business – a contemporary, vibrant, thriving town.  Our win has generated increased interest from external developers and investors and the whole Enterprising Britain experience has engaged everyone in the town in enterprise – encouraging people to get involved and make their ideas happen, whether it is in school, at home or at work. We hope it will ensure that our next wave of entrepreneurs are supported and can take up the challenge to become more enterprising.” 

Enterprising Britain is free to enter and is open to all places in Yorkshire and Humber that can demonstrate the impact enterprise has had on their community in the past two years. To register interest contact Peter Ide at Yorkshire Forward peter.ide@yorkshire-forward.com or telephone 01904, 69335. Alternatively, you can visit www.yorkshire-forward.com for further information, or email your contact details to enterprisingbritain@makeyourmark.org.uk.

Entries must be submitted by 30 April 2009 and the national winner will be announced in October.  The competition is run by Make Your Mark, on behalf of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), working in close partnership with Yorkshire Forward.

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Notes to Editors

  • Enterprising Britain is a nationwide competition that celebrates and recognises enterprise achievement throughout all the regions of the UK. For more information please visit www.enterprisingbritain.org
  • Enterprising Britain is open to all places (in the UK) that can demonstrate how they have transformed the community through enterprise in the last two years. All entrants must represent an identifiable geographic area, such as a town, a city, a parish or neighbourhood and be able to demonstrate that enterprise is central to the economic and or social transformation of the place.  
  • The competition runs nationally across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and operates in two stages: a regional nomination stage and a national competition between the regional finalists
  • The regional heats for the competition run from 25 February to 29 May 2009. The 12 regional winners will be visited by members of the judging panel over the summer
  • Last year Scarborough Renaissance Partnership won Enterprising Britain 2008 for its Waking Sleeping Beauty project which transformed the declining seaside town, stamping out seasonal unemployment, creating new industry sectors and attracting more than £200m of private sector investment along with hundreds of new jobs
  • The Enterprising Britain 2007 winner was North Staffordshire Regeneration Zone (www.nsrz.org) and the runner-up was The Paper Trail www.thepapertrail.org.uk
  • The Enterprising Britain 2006 winner was West Kilbride Craft & Design Town. For more information go to www.westkilbride.org.uk
  • The Enterprising Britain 2005 winner was Sherwood Energy Village, Ollerton. For more information go to www.sherwoodenergyvillage.co.uk
  • The overall winner and runner-up of Enterprising Britain 2009 will be entered into a Europe-wide competition – the European Enterprise Awards.  For more information visit www.european-enterprise-awards.org. The European Enterprise Awards are inspired by the Enterprising Britain Competition, and aim to reward local and regional initiatives that are improving business prospects. The European Enterprise Awards are open to the 27 Member States of the European Union as well as Iceland, Norway and Turkey. 
  • For further information on the Government’s enterprise policy, please contact the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform press office on 0207 215 5614 (0207 215 3505 for out-of-hours calls)
  • Further information on the competition, case studies and photography from all Enterprising Britain 2008 finalists and the national winner are available from Katie Peden on 020 7612 8835 / 0786 750 5575 or email katie.peden@kindredagency.com

Yorkshire Forward

  • Yorkshire Forward is the Regional Development Agency behind the economic regeneration of Yorkshire and Humber. It aims to make a positive difference by investing in jobs, improving towns and cities, and in supporting businesses throughout the region.
  • Over the past year, Yorkshire Forward has created and safeguarded more than 27,000 new jobs; helped create and attract more than 1,100 new businesses, provided nearly 66,000 learning opportunities and attracted more than £333 million private sector finance - achieving or exceeding all of the targets it was set. 
  • Yorkshire Forward’s investment across the region is maximised by attracting European Regional Development Funding from the Objective One and Two programmes.
  • For further information, images or to arrange an interview, please contact Victoria Pourzand, Senior Press Officer on 0113 3949904 or on 07736181063 or email victoria.pourzand@yorkshire-forward.com