University of Southampton, SETsquared Business Acceleration
Contact Details: |
David Bream, Centre Director |
Type of Project: |
At the time of the visit by JISC infoNet in early 2010 the Business Acceleration Centre was situated within Research & Innovation Services in an existing building on the University's Highfield Campus. The space was not built for purpose but was well geared up for the activities that went on within it with meeting rooms, reception facility, kitchen, broadband, wireless data and telecoms. The space was also in a good location for access to Southampton's City Centre and transport links. SETsquared is now located in the University of Southampton Science Park. The Science Park is a 45 acre development with close links to main transport routes. |
Start/End Date: |
SETsquared originally set up a centre on the Highfield Campus at the University of Southampton in June 2003. Southampton SETsquared moved from its home within Research & Innovation Services to its current location of the University of Southampton Science Park, Chilworth, Southampton, in June 2010. The Science Park has seen some major development on a phased basis since The Science Park Company was formed in 1983. The latest new development was completed in 2009. |
Funding Sources
The space has been supported by Higher Education Innovation Funding. The Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) has also provided support.
Fees
From £100 month.
Additional project funding
In 2007 the SETsquared partnership was awarded a £1.5 million Science Bridge grant from the UK's Department of Trade and Industry to 'create and develop valuable relationships with the high technology research and development regions in southern England and in Southern California'.
The Science Bridge is a collaborative project involving the SETsquared Partners and the University of California, San Diego and the University of California, Irvine.
Three spin-out companies from Southampton have already benefited from the programme; one of the companies involved suggested that if they had tried to make the same contacts themselves it would have taken two years and cost over £2 million.
Corporate Finance Community
SETsquared has links with other supportive bodies in the region, including;
- SEEDA, (South East England Development Agency), which is responsible for managing two national Business Support products within the South East, Selective Finance for Investment in England (SFIE) and Grant for Research & Development (G4R&D)
- Finance South East (FSE) is a not-for-profit funding company which has helped companies in the region raise in excess of £20million
- Angels for Growth
