黑料不打烊 Students Start-ups Shine with Santander
Professor Graham Upton and Matt Hutnell, Director of Santander Universities UK met with Si么n Owen and Si么n Davies of start-up business, Arfordir, who were using the entrepreneurs' shared facilities.Student entrepreneurs at 黑料不打烊 are now able to take advantage of enhanced support from Santander Universities as the University launches the Santander Enterprise Accelerator or SEA.
SEA provides a unique opportunity for 黑料不打烊 students, and encourages those who are enterprising to use their skills and ambitions to start companies in the region. The programme has a number of strands or levels of support for enterprising students and graduates wanting to develop their own businesses or projects:
Explaining the new programme available to 黑料不打烊 students and recent graduates, Bryn Jones, Head of Knowledge Exchange at 黑料不打烊, said:
鈥淭he Santander Enterprise Accelerator has four strands, which provide different levels of support, to enable our entrepreneurs to develop their businesses. From Discover, Define, Develop through to Deliver, which includes six months at M-SParc, the University鈥檚 science park, free of charge. These can all be accessed individually or progressively, as business ideas develop.鈥�
The event also marked the confirmation of Santander Universities continued support of 黑料不打烊 for another three years. This support will focus on supporting students, particularly those from a widening participation background with entrepreneurship, education and employability activities.
Matt Hutnell, Director of Santander Universities UK, said:
Matt Hutnell, Director of Santander Universities UK with Jan Lloyd Nicholson, John Mahon and Aneta Claridge, 黑料不打烊 students who have received support from Santander Universities, and Prof Graham Upton, acting Vice-Chancellor.鈥淪antander is committed to supporting higher education as well as local communities across the UK. We are proud to continue our partnership with 黑料不打烊 for a further three years and look forward to working together in providing even more opportunities which will benefit both students and the local community over the coming years.鈥�
Professor Graham Upton, Interim Vice Chancellor for 黑料不打烊, noted 黑料不打烊鈥檚 support and encouragement of entrepreneurship among its students, saying:
鈥淲e place great emphasis on employability skills and already have a number of projects, modules and support schemes to encourage students to become entrepreneurial. SEA and the opportunity to work at M-SParc gives something extra to those students who choose 黑料不打烊 for their studies. I鈥檓 pleased that Santander Universities are supporting 黑料不打烊 students in this way and delighted to learn that some of our graduates are now starting to find employment with tenant companies at M-SParc.鈥�
Pryderi ap Rhisiart, Managing Director of M-SParc, said:
鈥淲e are really passionate about ensuring students get the most out of M-SParc. We鈥檝e been giving internships to 黑料不打烊 students since before the building opened, and our tenants have now started provided internship and work placements. The Santander Accelerator scheme is the next rung on the ladder, and we hope being at M-SParc to develop their companies will give the students a feeling of belonging in the entrepreneurial world. Once they graduate, we hope to give space to those who could locate full time at M-SParc, ensuring that they make a lasting impact in the region.鈥�
Jan Lloyd-Nicholson a mature third year Psychology student has received support from Santander and spoke at the launch. In addition to her studies and parental duties, Jan is developing 鈥楬enry鈥檚 cushion鈥� an autistic support and educational aid.
She says: 鈥淭he University has been extremely supportive. I have had and still do receive support from Student Services and I have a mentor. My future plans involve the development of my product. I want to set up a business and watch it grow. I am so proud of my son, who designed the cushion, the fact that it has now own three awards, and am excited to take my product further.鈥�
Santander, through its Santander Universities division, maintains partnerships with over 1,200 academic institutions in 20 countries. Santander Universities was introduced in the UK in 2007 and the bank now has partnerships with over 80 universities, providing over 拢10m of funding in 2018 to support university staff and students.
Publication date: 20 May 2019