Student and SME link-up will boost economic growth
An initiative to boost enterprise by linking entrepreneurial students with SMEs is a crucial step towards the long term economic success of the UK, the Marches LEP said today.
The Startup Career Milkrounds aims to give up to 4,000 university students and graduates the chance to engage with small firms in a bid to raise the skills gap and create jobs.
The scheme, part of the Government-led enterprise education package, was today welcomed by the chairman of the Marches LEP, Dr Geoffrey Davies OBE.
“Small and medium-sized enterprises are not only the backbone of the national economy, they make up around 85 per cent of our regional economy here in Herefordshire, Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin.
“This scheme will give students and graduates the chance to secure placements, learn new vocational skills and create relationships with companies which will also benefit from new talent.
“Often it is the big companies, already major employers, which are linking up with higher education. However, it is the small companies and the start-up enterprises which employ more than 90 per cent of people in the UK. This scheme is a step in the right direction to help not only develop the entrepreneurs of the future, but also to boost SME growth which will, in turn, help revitalise the economy.”
The Startup Career Milkrounds will see National Association of College and University Entrepreneurs (NACUE) and Enternships working with university enterprise societies, working together to create a national brand for an annual Milkround fortnight that will give students and graduates the chance to engage with small firms through careers fairs.
Dr Davies added: “Although this scheme is being run via university enterprise organisations, I hope this will demonstrate to Marches SMEs that by linking up with schools and colleges in our region as well, they can not only develop the next generation of entrepreneurs but also gain access to new ideas and talent which could benefit their own business.”
The Marches LEP was recently awarded £100,000 to help support skills and training work through the Enterprise Zone Skills Fund. The funding will see the LEP working in partnership with colleges and independent providers across the Marches to tailor the provision of adult skills to the needs of employers not just in the Enterprise Zone area in Hereford, but across the wider LEP area.
