DEPARTMENT FOR
BUSINESS, ENTERPRISE AND REGULATORY REFORM News Release (2009/37)
issued by COI News Distribution Service. 25 February 2009
The hunt begins
today for the UK's enterprise success stories with the launch
of the Enterprising Britain 2009 competition. Lord Mandelson,
Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform,
is calling for hotspots of innovation - locations which are
tackling the economic downturn head on by creating jobs, boosting
local businesses and nurturing budding entrepreneurial talent - to
step up and show why they deserve to be named the UK's most
enterprising place.
The Enterprising Britain competition, a key part of the
Government's drive to create the right conditions for
enterprise across the UK, seeks out areas of enterprise excellence
from across the UK - villages, towns, cities and neighbourhoods
which have embedded a culture of enterprise that supports and
encourages their entrepreneurs and businesses, helping them to
survive the downturn and emerge stronger on the other side.
The 2009 competition is being launched in Scarborough; the winner
of last year's hotly contested competition. Following its
Enterprising Britain success, the seaside town's enterprise
credentials have just been recognised on an international scale by
the European Enterprise Awards, where it is up against countries
including France, Latvia and Norway on the shortlist for the
Entrepreneurship Promotion category. The results will be announced
at an awards ceremony in Prague in May.
The Scarborough Renaissance Partnership - a coalition of local
businesses, residents and council representatives - transformed
the declining seaside town into a shining example of enterprise
achievement, stamping out seasonal unemployment, creating new
industry sectors and attracting more than £200m of private sector
investment along with hundreds of new jobs. It reduced economic
dependence on the declining tourism and fishing industries,
capitalised on the physical regeneration of the harbourside,
kick-started a boom in business start-ups and introduced Freebay
Wifi along the coast, making the internet accessible to all. This
year, Enterprising Britain is encouraging businesses-led projects
which have transformed their local communities to enter the awards
and gain recognition for their fantastic work.
Secretary of State for Business, Lord Mandelson said:
"Enterprise is a long-term investment for the future and
crucial for success in the current economic climate. In a
downturn, it is more important than ever that entrepreneurs are
supported and have the confidence they need to develop their ideas.
"Enterprising Britain allows communities to share their
experiences of innovation, inspire others and drive forward enterprise."
Speaking at the launch, Carl Hopkins, entrepreneur and star of
Channel 4's Secret Millionaire, said:
"Now more than ever, we need to tap into examples of what is
working in places across the country in terms of supporting,
encouraging and maintaining enterprise. Entering the Enterprising
Britain competition is your chance to shout about what you've
achieved and to ensure that other small and medium sized
businesses, communities and enterprise projects can learn from
your successes. The competition helps highlight and spread best
practice in enterprise across the UK and I would encourage all the
innovative projects out there that have used entrepreneurial
spirit to make Britain a better place to live and work, to enter
and have a chance at being crowing the UK's enterprise champion."
Nick Taylor, Renaissance Manager at Scarborough Renaissance
Partnership will now become an Enterprising Britain judge for the
2009 competition. He said:
"Winning Enterprising Britain has put us on the map and
raised our profile. People now realise that Scarborough is more
than just a seaside resort; it's a hub of culture and
business - a contemporary, vibrant, thriving town. Our win has
generated increased interest from external developers and
investors and the whole Enterprising Britain experience has
engaged everyone in the town in enterprise - encouraging people to
get involved and make their ideas happen, whether it is in school,
at home or at work. We hope it will ensure that our next wave of
entrepreneurs are supported and can take up the challenge to
become more enterprising."
Enterprising Britain is free to enter and is open to all places
in the UK that can demonstrate the impact enterprise has had on
their community in the past two years. To register interest email
your contact details to enterprisingbritain@makeyourmark.org.uk.
Entries must be submitted by 30 April 2009 and the winner will be
announced in October. The competition is run by Make Your Mark,
on behalf of the Department for Business, Enterprise and
Regulatory Reform (BERR), working in close partnership with the
Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) and the Devolved
Administrations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Application forms are also available from RDAs and Devolved
Administrations or can be downloaded from http://www.enterprisingbritain.org.
Notes to Editors
* Enterprising Britain is a nationwide competition that
celebrates and recognises enterprise achievement throughout all
the regions of the UK. For more information please visit http://www.enterprisingbritain.org
* Enterprising Britain is open to all places (in the UK) that can
demonstrate how they have transformed the community through
enterprise in the last two years. All entrants must represent an
identifiable geographic area, such as a town, a city, a parish or
neighbourhood and be able to demonstrate that enterprise is
central to the economic and or social transformation of the place.
* The competition runs nationally across England, Scotland, Wales
and Northern Ireland and operates in two stages: a regional
nomination stage and a national competition between the regional finalists
* The regional heats for the competition run from 25 February to
29 May 2009. The 12 regional winners will be visited by members of
the judging panel over the summer
* Last year Scarborough Renaissance Partnership won Enterprising
Britain 2008 for its Waking Sleeping Beauty project which
transformed the declining seaside town, stamping out seasonal
unemployment, creating new industry sectors and attracting more
than £200m of private sector investment along with hundreds of new jobs
* The Enterprising Britain 2007 winner was North Staffordshire
Regeneration Zone (http://www.nsrz.org) and the
runner-up was The Paper Trail http://www.thepapertrail.org.uk
* The Enterprising Britain 2006 winner was West Kilbride Craft
& Design Town. For more information go to http://www.westkilbride.org.uk
* The Enterprising Britain 2005 winner was Sherwood Energy
Village, Ollerton. For more information go to http://www.sherwoodenergyvillage.co.uk
* The overall winner and runner-up of Enterprising Britain 2009
will be entered into a Europe-wide competition - the European
Enterprise Awards. For more information visit http://www.european-enterprise-awards.org.
The European Enterprise Awards are inspired by the Enterprising
Britain Competition, and aim to reward local and regional
initiatives that are improving business prospects. The European
Enterprise Awards are open to the 27 Member States of the European
Union as well as Iceland, Norway and Turkey.
* For further information on the Government's enterprise
policy, please contact the Department for Business, Enterprise and
Regulatory Reform press office on 0207 215 5614