WMCA preparing to launch West Midlands Innovation Accelerator
The West Midlands Combined Authority is getting ready to launch the West Midlands Innovation Accelerator.
The Accelerator, which is aiming to boost commercial growth and investment in the region through supporting its innovation and R&D capability and capacity, was initially announced in the Government’s 2022 Levelling up White Paper.
Funded through a share of a £100 million fund from Innovate UK, split between three regional Innovation Accelerators over the next two years, the West Midlands programme will start in May of this year.
Following expressions of interest in June 2022, Medical and Clean Technologies have been targeted by the West Midlands Innovation Board.
Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, and chair of the WMCA, said: “I’m delighted to see the Innovation Accelerator fund finally land in our region which will unlock a further £150m of private sector co-investment. The funding will inject momentum into the delivery of the West Midlands Plan for Growth which sets out how we will unlock hundreds of thousands of new jobs and be home to major global companies in this decade.
"One of my key mayoral missions is to restore our status as the fastest growing region outside of London - just as we were pre-pandemic. Innovation is central to achieving that mission.
"We’re already a leading region for UK innovation when it comes to automotive and aerospace - with every £1 of Government spending for Research & Development translating in to £4 of business investment. This latest news will help us to build on our progress to date – with Government’s forthcoming Trailblazer Devolution Deal and proposed programme of Investment Zones set to usher in exciting times ahead.”
Mike Wright, chair of the West Midlands Innovation Board said: “The Innovation Accelerator is set to turbo-growth of our regional economy, including practical support to innovative clean-tech and med-tech firms, as well as driving cross-sector innovation.
"The close working with Innovate UK and the West Midlands Innovation Board on this is a great example of partnership work benefiting the region, based on input last summer from over 200 innovation leaders from business, academia, and Government.
"The Innovation Board now has a significant challenge, following the submission of a number of high-quality projects right across the region, to both back the five projects, and seek investment for further projects in the pipeline.”
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Among the projects in the regional portfolio is Clean Futures, led by Connected Places Catapult, in conjunction with Black Country Innovative Manufacturing Organisation and Coventry University.
Based from specialist hubs in Dudley and Coventry, the Clean Tech project will support the development and diversification of transport manufacturing supply chains in the West Midlands, enabling the transition from fossil-fuelled to clean-tech solutions.
It will see SMEs supported through funding programmes to develop, demonstrate and grow clean-tech solutions in partnership with OEMs, Tier 1s and the wider ecosystem.
Another is the WMCA-led West Midlands Innovation Programme, which is geared towards the Capability and Capacity strand of the accelerator. It will bring together a team of sector innovation experts under the banner of the Innovation Alliance for the West Midlands, bringing a private sector voice and capacity to identify and address business innovation challenges and opportunities.
The team will use an innovation fund to pilot the development of a number of novel, collaborative interventions which overcome barriers to and exploit opportunities for innovation within and between sectors which responds to demand.
Indro Mukerjee, chief executive at Innovate UK said: “As the UK's innovation agency, Innovate UK is dedicated to building strong regional partnerships to boost local innovation and commercialisation.
“Our Innovation Accelerators will attract further private sector investment in city regions, driving economic and societal growth and benefiting local communities. Together, we can unleash the full innovation potential of every community in the UK.
George Freeman, Minister of State for Science Research & Innovation at DSIT said: "Through Record investment in our UK science, technology & innovation sectors, the Innovation Economy is creating new career opportunities in the campuses, clusters & companies of tomorrow.
“That’s why UKRI is putting clusters at the heart of its of its £25bn budget up to 2025, and why our £100m Innovation Accelerator Program provides £33m each to 3 emerging clusters to attract industrial co-investment and become major, globally competitive centres for research and innovation.
“The W Midlands Cluster is becoming a world class hub of R+D in med tech and clean tech. I’m delighted that local leaders have come together to use our £33m to launch such exciting programs with industry and Universities in this exciting area.”
