Over a dozen Sunderland businesses have created jobs and launched new products or services thanks to a Government-backed grant scheme.
The Enterprising Sunderland Innovation Grants were launched to help the city’s businesses realise their potential and are being delivered by the North East BIC on behalf of Sunderland City Council.
Funded by the Government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), the grants are specifically aimed at supporting projects that are new to the applicant’s business or marketplace and can help create jobs.
Eligible companies are able to receive a grant for up to 40% of project costs, up to a value of £25,000, and 17 city businesses have already secured grants, ranging from manufacturers to tech companies, engineers and environmental consultancies.
Debbie Simpson, business adviser at the North East BIC, said: “We have helped over a dozen businesses diversify into new markets, develop new products, or add new tech or processes into their existing infrastructure since the programme was launched in November 2023.
“We’ve witnessed some fantastic success stories including a long-established, family-owned businesses truly embrace digital transformation, engineers bringing planet-saving innovations to market and fast-growing start-ups significantly increase their offering by investing in new hardware and software.
“We only have a limited amount of money to distribute however and, with applications flooding in, we would encourage any interested businesses to enquire sooner rather than later to avoid missing out.”
One company to have been successful in securing an Innovation Grant is STN Power Systems, based at Washington Business Centre.
With the support of a £20,000 grant, the company has successfully launched STN Power Products & OakEV, a spin-out brand offering a range of smart electric vehicle (EV) charger products. It has also grown its team from three to five, with more skilled jobs and European expansion in the pipeline.
Chris Pennison, managing director at STN Power Products, said: “Would we have invested £50,000 without the grant? Honestly, no, it felt too much of a stretch. But £30,000 became doable.
“The £20,000 of support de-risked the process and gave us the confidence to go for it. It was a catalyst, a launchpad, that allowed us to move quickly, protect our ideas and get to market.”
Another company to have received support is Evidence Based Education, a developer of software for education providers based in Sunderland city centre whose products are utilised across the globe.
Jack Deverson MBE, co-founder and CEO, said: “Since we moved to our office in Sunderland in 2019, the support from the BIC, the Council and other organisations has been second to none. The Innovation Grant has been one of these ways in which we’ve accessed support, and it has been instrumental in helping us scale over the last 18 months.
“The funding enabled us to invest in a totally new look and user experience for schools on our Great Teaching Toolkit. It has since provided the springboard to both access more schools close to home, and open up new markets overseas too. The investment would have been a large risk for us without support; the grant enabled us to manage that risk with confidence, and made it possible.”
Cllr Kevin Johnston, portfolio holder for housing, regeneration and business at Sunderland City Council, said: “The Enterprising Sunderland Innovation Grants are a fantastic way of ensuring businesses, like Evidence Based Education and STN, have the support and finance required to truly realise their potential.
“We are fortunate as a city to be home to scores of businesses who are constantly innovating and flying the flag for the UK overseas, so we’d encourage companies to get in touch with the Council’s Business Investment team and find out more. It could be just the kickstart they need.”
Enterprising Sunderland Innovation Grants are available now to businesses with commercial premises within the Sunderland local authority area.
The Innovation Grant and support from the BIC forms part of Enterprising Sunderland which has received £523,541 from the Government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund Programme, managed in Sunderland by Sunderland City Council on behalf of the Sunderland Partnership.
