缅北禁地

We're here to help you explore working for yourself. These resources and opportunities can help you at any stage.

Explore working for yourself

• Looking for a placement in a start-up? Visit . 
• Test your entrepreneurial potential with .
• Map your entrepreneurial competencies with .
• Get valuable advice and insights for freelancers from .
• Plan and develop a viable creative business with .
• Reflect on what is most important when starting up with 20 questions workbook (PDF: 140KB).
•  on various topics to help you on your start-up journey.
•  – for information about immigration routes which can be switched to from a Student visa in the UK including the Graduate visa and the Innovator Founder visa routes.
• - A curated archive of failed start-ups and the lessons left behind.

Develop your business

• Use  to define your product-market fit. Watch this  on how to use the canvas.
• Use  to create a business plan. Watch this  on how to use the canvas.
• Use MINTEL, Passport and Statista for access to the latest information, trends and statistics as part of your secondary market research. These platforms are available to current students through the . Graduates can access MINTEL through  in the City Library, in-person. Check with your local BIPC branch if you are no longer in 缅北禁地.
• A Start Up Consultant or Business Adviser can help you access information through COBRA for insights on specific business-related topics. .
• All the tools you need to design your business with . This document will give you everything you need in one. .
• Use the  to understand what questions to ask in your primary market research. Take a look at our  for details on this book and others available in the Philip Robinson Library.

Establish your business

• Understand the legal side of being self-employed with resources from . Visit their  for guidance on submitting a self-assessment tax return.
• Get training and support on Intellectual Property with the .
• Learn to trade overseas with resources from the .

Co-working spaces

Co-working spaces where you can meet like-minded people and access specialist support.

• The START UP Space, Level 1, King's Gate building, offers hot-desking and open-plan meeting space. Perfect for catching up with the team and community.

•  brings researchers, start-ups and international brands together. Perfect for a focus on data science, urban science, or life science.
•  and  both offer hot-desking, meeting rooms and private office space. TusPark also has a ‘maker space’. Perfect for connecting and collaborating with other entrepreneurs.
•  has office space, meeting space, co-working spaces, and a cafe for collaborative working. Perfect if you don't want to walk far from campus.
• , part of Design Network North, offers state-of-the-art audio-visual systems. Perfect for creative and design-led businesses.

Networks and socials

Join a network or attend a social event to make new connections and drive your business forward.

•  provide courses, workshops and events. They also run the .
• is the North's leading development agency and community for creative professionals.
•  is one of the largest networks within the North East business community.
•  offers business support and events with a focus on digital and tech.
•  are a community for people working in the cultural sector in the North East, or connected to the North East. 
•  is a great source for freelancers, subscribe to the mailing list to hear about their slow networking events
•  and  a good source of networking events

Accelerators

Specialist packages of support to help you launch or grow a business.

•  offers a variety of programmes to help launch, grow or scale a business.

Funding

• If you have a well-defined and well researched business idea or early-stage start-up – START UP Grant Funding could be the fund for you.
• If you’re at the early stages of exploring a new opportunity and need some support with activity such as market research e.g. focus groups/ interviews/ surveys/ or prototyping. Or perhaps you’re exploring a freelance career and need some support to get started, take a look at the Make It Happen Fund first. You can apply for up to £500.

Annual events

Annual start-up events and conferences held in 缅北禁地.

•  is a paid-for conference with a focus on digital and tech. It includes thought-provoking talks, workshops and networking.
•  is a free conference with a focus on innovation. It includes keynotes, panel discussions, workshops and networking.
•  is an annual 5 day festival celebrating tech. It features lots of free events.

General sources of support for North East businesses

The North East BIC is a not鈥慺or鈥憄rofit enterprise hub that provides flexible workspace and expert business support to help entrepreneurs and organisations across the region start, grow, and innovate

The North East Chamber of Commerce is the largest and most influential business membership network, supporting, connecting and representing 2,000+ organisations.

The North East Growth Hub can help you find funding and finance and access business support in the North East. Their team of experts are equipped to support you and your business, regardless of your business size or stage.

'How to' Video Guides