Transform SY: Meet our partners

Transform SY - our newest accelerator that we are delivering in South Yorkshire to fuel the development of the local entrepreneurial ecosystem, is a collaborative project.

We are working together with private and public bodies, both local and national, as our goals and vision for South Yorkshire perfectly align.

And because we are very grateful to all of our partners - TEAM SY, UKSE and South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, we want to present all of them to you.

Time for you to meet the people behind the organisations looking to transform South Yorkshire. We are starting this week with UKSE.

UKSE is a subsidiary of Tata Steel. They work in steel areas across the UK to help businesses grow and create jobs.

UKSE provides equity and loan finance to growing companies in these areas. They also provide business premises to these businesses at their Business & Innovation Centres.

See www.ukse.co.uk for more information.

We wanted to hear what UKSE thinks about Transform SY, so we asked Steve Lyon, regional executive and one of the people we work the closest with on the programme, few questions:

Why is UKSE partnering with Entrepreneurial Spark to deliver Transform SY?

“To see a cohort of fresh entrepreneurial talent in South Yorkshire supported in such a way truly aligns itself with the ethos and culture you will find at UKSE. When it was first presented to us by the E Spark team, we were excited to lend our support to both the programme and its participants.”

 What excites you most about the programme?

 “I am excited to see the progression of each and every founder through the 6-month experience. At UKSE we see first-hand the cohort of entrepreneurial talent pouring out of South Yorkshire, many are just in need of a support system and some guidance to propel their way to long-term success.”

 What would you tell South Yorkshire-based founders reading this newsletter?

 “I would wholeheartedly recommend the programme to any South Yorkshire founders who are looking to accelerate their pathway to success, or even any in the pursuit of expanding their knowledge and sharpening their business acumen. The programme has a longstanding history of success across the UK, to be a part of that in South Yorkshire would be a brilliant opportunity for all.”

 What does success look like for Transform SY?

 “Success for Transform SY would hopefully see not only a diverse cohort of high growth start-ups established in the South Yorkshire region, but also, startups that are able to achieve longevity in their success moving forward. This would ultimately have the greatest benefit to the South Yorkshire region with quality job opportunities and a strong eco-system for business.”

Steve Lyon, Regional Executive, UKSE

‘This is an exciting initiative that will further cement South Yorkshire as the place to be for tech enabled businesses spanning a whole range of sectors.

The accelerator will provide participants with invaluable access to support and advice from a wealth of experts in their individual fields, helping to fuel sustainable growth and create further job opportunities in the region.

UKSE is delighted to be involved and very much looking forward to meeting with the applicants in due course.’

Thanks to Steve and UKSE for their support from the launch of Transform SY and we are looking forward to achieving great things together! Next week - time to meet TEAM SY!