Business Support Services

PROOF OF CONCEPTS FUND (APOC)

This fund will provide grants of upto 30k to SME's or potential SME'S across the West Midlands.

For more information please click here

Our portfolio of business support services is designed to assist technology based business start-ups and small and medium sized businesses, maximise their potential for growth. Our services cover access to capital, technical marketing, support for solving technical and business process problems using students and mediated networking with other companies to solve problems and to create new business opportunities.

These services are branded and delivered as follows:

Ignite is the new start-up and early stage business development programme of business support combining all our experience from supporting hundreds of entrepreneurs and business owners. For more information on how to get established, boost profitability and build substantial long-term value in your company, click on the Ignite logo now.

Access to Finance - We help you secure the capital from Business Angels, Venture Capital funds, banks and other sources that you need to develop your business. £10 million secured to date locally with our partners: Click on the Minerva logo now.

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Techmark - Techmark is a small, flexible, multilingual team of highly experienced marketers who use their extensive marketing skills and assets to develop businesses.  As part of the Science Parks business support we have more than ten years experience with over 500 SMEs in all aspects of business development.

We work to provide practical answers to critical marketing questions and identify solutions covering all aspects of creating a growing business. This ranges from start up and how to exploit markets through to strategy and how to manage growth.

We’ve worked with companies who don’t know where or who their market is through to companies who just need to freshen up their approach. Our experience ranges from finding completely new product ideas to revitalising a companies marketing, primarily in business to business markets. Our detailed support includes customer contact, market research, finding new markets, market forecasts, access to funding, publicity and copy to find and engage your target customers and to fit into your overall plans. Please contact us to discuss your business development needs.

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STEP - Student project Scheme has proved to be an effective business development tool.  Providing cost-effective solutions to business issues that have been identified by small companies, through the provision of second or penultimate year students to carry out these projects during the summer vacation.  The scheme is supported by the European Regional Development Fund and the University of Warwick Science Park.

If you are a company, click here for guidance note:
If your are a student, click here for guidance notes:

For business information click here
For student information click here

For further information about projects and any case study material
please click here.




KITTS - Knowledge Innovation Technology Transfer Scheme - is a unique graduate placement programme to support and enable SMEs to access the skills and knowledge of a university graduate.  The scheme is supported by European Social Fund and the University of Warwick Science Park.
For further information about the KITTS programme, please click here....

TTP - Term Time Placements -  is a relatively new scheme managed by the University of Warwick Science Park, working in conjunction with local Universities, providing flexible, paid part-time work to encourage students to gain useful work experience and earn some money during Term Time.  The scheme is supported by the University of Warwick Science Park.

Click here for more information (PDF File)

Clusters - Mediated groups of companies in specific sectors working together to use their skills collaboratively to create new business opportunities.


Other Service Providers are:

The Social Science Workplace Programme – SSWEP - is a relatively new scheme specifically designed to encourage social science students to participate in summer projects within SME’s across the UK, developing and contributing social science skills in the workplace and encouraging knowledge transfer and capacity building.