Sussex leads bid to establish ‘Golden Circle’ of South East universities
The University of Sussex has led a successful bid for funding to bring together universities from across the South East in an effort to improve the number and success of their spinout companies.
With new funding from Research England’s Connecting Capability Fund, the university and its partners are looking to create a ‘Golden Circle’ of university innovation infrastructure next to the current ‘Golden Triangle’ hotspot around Oxford, Cambridge and London.
The project, which also involves the universities of Reading, Royal Holloway, Kent, Brighton, Essex and East Anglia, will work to identify and develop best practice for the creation of spinouts in collaboration with two consultancies.
An independent review of university spinout requested by the government and published at the end of 2023 noted that the scale and success of university spinouts had grown considerably, with positive impacts for UK economic growth.
But it also warned that supporting and delivering them can be costly for universities.
The University of Sussex says its Golden Circle proposal will enable universities to not just launch spinouts, but ensure they succeed by pooling knowledge and expertise across the region.
