DigitalCity is celebrating its tenth anniversary, and over the past decade has made a major impact on the regional economy
Teesside's digital supercluster is worth £174m a year to Teesside - and £62m to Middlesbrough alone.
DigitalCity is celebrating its tenth anniversary, and over the past decade has made a major impact on the regional economy, rejuvenating business, buildings and boosting jobs.
It was set up in 2004 to create a “vibrant, successful and self-sustaining supercluster based on the digital technologies, digital media and creative sectors and their enabling capabilities”.
The figures, from local enterprise partnership Tees Valley Unlimited’s economic unit, reveal the true impact of the ambitious supercluster, which has helped 250 graduates establish 216 companies and create 389 new jobs so far.
Today, Middlesbrough and Stockton are ranked at number 16 in a list of the UK’s digital hotspots by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, and make up the only hotspot north of Birmingham.
Born out of Teesside University, a long-time frontrunner in the computing and digital world, DigitalCity was created to harness the ability of students and encourage them to turn their skills into businesses.
The initiative launched fellowships to support fledgling businesses, offering support and access to the best mentors.
Meanwhile, the Boho One building in Middlesbrough was established to offer start-ups a social space, affordable rents and a package of support to aid their transformation into successful businesses.
DigitalCity’s ‘Garages to Global’ philosophy has resulted in award-winning companies such as games studios Double Eleven and Coatsink Software and innovative digital start-ups such as Sound Training for Reading, that can improve a child’s reading age by two years in six weeks.
Head of DigitalCity David Jeffries said: “Long before boot camps and accelerators were well-known DigitalCity fellowships gave enterprising graduates access to world-class mentors and facilities. We’ve seen over the past 10 years DigitalCity grow from an idea into a project that is making a massive difference to the economy of the Tees Valley and the North-east region.
“DigitalCity companies are developing cutting-edge technologies used in medicine to save lives; they are creating independent games studios with an international reputation and supporting hundreds of jobs regionally. Hopefully the next 10 years will see DigitalCity’s reputation continue to grow.”
Stephen Catchpole of Tees Valley Unlimited said: “DigitalCity has created a significant number of digital firms in the Tees Valley and supported many more. The digital growth in the Tees Valley has been driven by them and Teesside University’s digital expertise.
“Digital businesses in the region also support local industry, from shutdown and plant simulation software for process industries to financial modelling for the energy sectors.”
No comments:
Post a Comment