Business Minister
Mark Prisk today announced two new government initiatives to
support young people gaining their first experiences of enterprise
as he marked the start of Global Entrepreneurship Week at
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.
To support enterprise in schools Government is enhancing online
resources for teachers at the Enterprise Village and promoting
recruitment of 2,500 local enterprise champions through the
Inspiring the Future website.
There will be renewed support from the Government for the Premier
League Enterprise Academy, aimed at further promoting and
extending this successful project to 26 past and present Premier
League clubs.
Also launched today are two new services at
www.businesslink.gov.uk consisting of:
· My New Business, a comprehensive start-up
servicewhichprovides businesses with support and
guidance on how to set up a new business;
· The Growth and Improvement Service, which is designed
to be the first place to go to access essential information,
support and services for businesses.
Business and Enterprise Minister Mark Prisk said:
“Up and down the country, dynamic, innovative
entrepreneurs are creating jobs and driving sustainable economic
growth. It is vital that we do all we can to help them realise
their ambitions and transform the economies of their communities.
“Last year there were more than 40,000 events across some 104
countries, engaging over ten million participants. We know that
events like Global Entrepreneurship Week can transform people’s
appetite for enterprise.
“We want to inspire a new generation of entrepreneurs which will
help to connect people, share ideas and help people develop the
knowledge and confidence they need to pursue their dreams.”
The Inspiring the Future website, coordinated by the Education
and Employers Taskforce, recruits people from all sectors and
professions to volunteer in schools and colleges, providing
activities from mentoring to work experience.
The Premier League Enterprise Academy provides 11 to 19-year-olds
with advice and enterprise activities, introducing them to
business and self-employment. It is currently available through 18
past and present Premier League clubs.
The 1800 events this week are Britain’s contribution to Global
Entrepreneurship Week, which sees 40,000 events across 104
countries involving some ten million would-be entrepreneurs.
This follows the Government’s announcement last week of a series
of new measures to help Britain’s small and medium enterprises,
including investment through the Regional Growth Fund, support for
exporters and the new Finance Fitness campaign.
Other events taking during Global Entrepreneurship Week include:
The National Consortium of University Entrepreneurs hosting an
event with Mark Prisk at London Southbank University on Tuesday 15
November to support the creation of student enterprise societies.
Mark Prisk and Baroness Wilcox at the British Library on
Wednesday to support business mentoring, with a focus on promoting
mentoring for women. The new mentoring web portal
www.mentorsme.co.uk provides a single point of access for those
seeking mentoring and those seeking to be mentors, throughout the
UK.
The Royal British Legion hosting an event on Thursday to support
the Be the Boss scheme for ex-service personnel. The initiative
offers business start-up training, grants and loans up to £30,000
as well as mentoring. Funded by BIS and delivered by the Royal
British Legion (RBL), the scheme has attracted over 1,000
registrations.
Notes to editors:
1. The new BusinessLink services can be accessed at www.businesslink.gov.uk/newservices
2. BIS's online newsroom contains the latest press
notices, speeches, as well as video and images for download. It
also features an up to date list of BIS press office contacts. See
http://www.bis.gov.uk/newsroom
for more information.
Contacts:
BIS Press Office
NDS.BIS@coi.gsi.gov.uk
Alex. Hamilton
Phone: 020 7215 5976
Alex.Hamilton@bis.gsi.gov.uk