VentureVersity, developed through a collaboration between Loughborough University, the University of Leicester, and De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) in partnership with Leicester Start-Ups, aimed to create new accelerated pathways for university intellectual property and ideas.
Academics pitched to be part of the programme, which was funded by Research England’s Connecting Capability Fund. Successful applicants took part in a structured accelerator process that included mentoring, commercial expertise and access to investors to help them transform their research into viable businesses, across sectors including manufacturing, health tech and utilities.
From 26 initial project teams, 11 were selected for the final accelerator, culminating in a showcase event that revealed five spin-out companies now in development and several others now advancing through licensing or social enterprise routes. Collectively, they secured £225,000 in funding.
The VentureVersity programme also created a practical toolkit – a blueprint for universities across the country – enabling them to commercialise their intellectual property and drive innovation within their regions.
VentureVersity is one of just three projects shortlisted for the Knowledge Exchange Awards’ Sector Collaboration category. The KE Awards celebrate excellence in knowledge exchange and innovation across the UK’s higher education sector. Winners will be announced at an awards evening on November 27 at The Lowry, Salford.
The three Leicestershire universities are working together under the Universities Partnership, a civic agreement launched in 2022 to maximise benefits for the region through shared work on innovation, knowledge exchange and skills development.
Thanks to its success, Venture Versity is now being expanded to academics across 15 Midlands universities as part of the new Forging Ahead initiative. It is one of four programmes that Forging Ahead (also funded by Research England’s Connecting Capabilities Fund) is upscaling across the region, alongside Medici Enterprise Training, SPARK the Midlands, and Innovate UK ICURe.
Professor Dan Parsons, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation at Loughborough University, said:“VentureVersity demonstrates the power of regional collaboration in driving innovation and growth. By working together across Leicester and Leicestershire’s universities and business networks, we’ve built a model that not only accelerates new ventures but strengthens our collective innovation ecosystem. Being shortlisted for this national award is testament to that shared vision.”
Will Wells, CEO of Space Park Leicester at the University of Leicester, said: “We are delighted to be nominated for this award. The approach we adopted in VentureVersity is genuinely novel and innovative in itself. It was made possible because of the close working relationships between our region’s university partners and effective co-design and delivery with our start-up community and local businesses. Once we opened up the opportunity to researchers and students, we were amazed by the demand. We expect to see at least five businesses emerge out of the programme.”
Professor Mike Kagioglou, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Planning, Research and Innovation at DMU said: “VentureVersity shows what can be achieved when universities work together with businesses to turn research into real-world impact. Seeing five new ventures now emerging from the programme and others progressing towards commercialisation demonstrates the quality and ambition of our researchers and their ideas. It’s a brilliant example of how collaboration can drive economic and societal benefit.”
Rajinder Bhuhi, Forging Ahead Project Manager said: “A huge congratulations to the VentureVersity teams from University of Leicester, Loughborough University, and De Montfort University! The award for Sector Collaboration is apt as teams worked across institutions to realise the commercialisation of research-led ideas.
“So, what’s next? Through Forging Ahead, which launched earlier this year, VentureVersity now has that opportunity of reaching a wider audience of academics with 15 university partners across the Midlands, aiming to scale this successful model even further. This expansion marks a crucial step in unlocking the potential of more research-led ideas across the region, building a more connected innovation ecosystem and a stronger pipeline of new commercialisation opportunities.”