Job boast in Coventry

Around 60 new jobs have been created in the Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire sub-region thanks to a collection of small, expanding businesses.

A range of companies across the University of Warwick Science Park’s Innovation Centres have announced that they have taken on new staff meaning more than 2,000 people are now employed across the Science Park.

The Innovation Centres are situated in Binley, Warwick and Blythe Valley as well as the main site of the Science Park which is based next to the University campus in Westwood Heath.

Among the companies expanding is Enzen Global – an India-based engineering consultancy that opened its UK office at Blythe Valley Park in Solihull last year.

Fusion ICT, CRT, Indigo Retail, Scriptswitch Ltd and MTD at Binley have also taken on several new staff while Streamline Computing at Warwick and i2i and Cellfacts at the main site are also adding to their workforce.

David Rowe, University of Warwick Science Park director, said: “It has been said for a long time now, that small, intelligent businesses are going to play a major role in the future of the local and regional economy.

“And there is no better example of that than the expansions we have seen across our sites in the past month or so.

“As a Science Park, there are now well over 2,000 people in employment and much of our office space is taken.”

The idea behind the University of Warwick Science Park is to offer start-up and young businesses the opportunity to grow.

Many are spin-outs from the university itself but most begin as just one or two person companies with no association with the university but utilise the facilities and programmes on offer.

Six offices have been set aside for the Ignite programme which offers start-ups and very young businesses the chance to find their feet. Those offices are now full.

A further eight offices have been set aside for the regional Bridges to Growth programme which aims to attract inward investment into the area from abroad. These offices are now occupied and we are looking to provide more.

David added: “Businesses grow and evolve in different ways so the Science Park caters for a range of needs. Whether it is assistance with gaining capital, sourcing strong student placements or simply flexible office space we are able to help our tenants every step of the way.

“At the same time, we are looking to encourage inward investment into the region via the Bridges to Growth programme which has also led to an influx of new jobs – while Ignite makes sure there are more new companies in the pipeline based on local entrepreneurial talent.”