Basingstoke: Incubation centre launched

Plans for a new business start-up centre in Basingstoke to help fledging hi-tech companies and small innovative businesses grow in the borough were announced yesterday.

The new incubation centre, based at Basing View, will offer flexible office accommodation and business support services to start-up hi-tech companies or individuals with a new business idea, and help get their companies off the ground.

Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council has been working with the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) to establish the centre after research showed there was demand for business start-up facilities, which have been shown to have a significant impact on company survival rates.

The centre aims to provide small, serviced office units on competitive, low-risk rental terms with an ‘easy-in, easy-out’ agreement, secretarial and accountancy support as well as meeting spaces where businesses can share knowledge and ideas.

It is planned that SEEDA’s business innovation and growth experts will also be based at the centre along with the council’s two 3en funds. Together they will be able to offer high growth businesses access to funding opportunities as well as host network events and help facilitate relationships between the incubation centres’ entrepreneurs and larger more established businesses.

Leader of Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council Andrew Finney said: “We want to let businesses know that this council is committed to investing in the long term economic growth of the borough by encouraging and supporting enterprise, innovation, research and development.

“There’s never a good time to start up a business let alone in a recession but this new centre will provide as much support and assistance as it can to ensure our borough entrepreneurs and business men and women of the future get the best possible start they can.

“The establishment of this centre will also take us a step closer to fulfilling our goal of bringing educational colleges and universities together with businesses to create a ‘Learning Campus’ where innovation and learning can prosper and academic achievement raised.”

The chief executive of the borough council confirmed a decision to enable the council to support the provision of an incubation centre in Basing View. This will make it possible for the interested operator of the centre to complete its commercial negotiations which, until such time as they are finalised, remain commercially sensitive. Once these negotiations have been concluded Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council will provide more details about the project.