Awards for Bright Ideas

Innovative social enterprises create Manchester buzz

Leading figures in Manchester business and academia came together at The University of Manchester Innovation Centre (UMIC) on Friday as part of a unique innovation competition.

The Social Enterprise ‘Grand Prix’ introduces established businesses to the latest ideas and innovations for social enterprises currently being developed within the University, with the aim of tapping into accumulated knowledge and commercial expertise.

The Grand Prix was the culmination of five months of applications, preliminary rounds and judging by The University’s Faculty of Humanities and The University’s Innovation Group, UMIᶟ.

The competition was open to the Faculty’s academics, postgraduates and staff, who were invited to submit an idea for a social-based venture, with a view to growing their enterprise.

Eleven applicant projects were initially received, with six making it through to the Grand Prix final.  
The six shortlisted applicants pitched their ideas to a panel of judges comprising The Faculty of Humanities, The University of Manchester Intellectual Property (UMIP) Manchester Enterprise Centre, Winning Pitch Ltd and Frontier PR.

All finalists received a package of commercial support based on the expertise of the various judges and the specific needs of their enterprise. The successful applicants where ranked as follows.

1.    Equal first and joint winners: Un-convention - A series of global events aimed specifically at the grassroots and independent music sector & WeaveMCR: A social action platform focused on bringing the Manchester public and institutions together for social innovation and change

2.    One Day Like This: A self-guided digital tour of Manchester’s famous and historic musical sites

3.    Aplaceforme.com: A website hosted by Network for Information Symmetry in Higher Education

4.    Multi-F: A specialist consultancy focusing on multi-faith spaces in buildings

5.    Link 360: A leadership network for social enterprise leaders

A range of social enterprise experts attended the event, including representatives from the University of Manchester, UnLtd - the national charity supporting social entrepreneurs and the local community, Jayne Lawton of Grobox Ltd, Leigh Wharton of community incubator Bubble Enterprises and Melanie Bryan OBE – a multi-award winning social entrepreneur.

Professor James Thompson, Associate Dean for Humanities at The University of Manchester, comments: “Many thanks to all the entrants to this first social enterprise competition, and to all the colleagues from UMI3, MEC and the external partners like UnLtd, Winning Pitch and Frontier PR.

“The Faculty is committed to ensure our research has social impact and offers new ways for communities beyond the university to benefit from the work we do. This competition’s entrants have demonstrated how exceptional research and teaching can reach beyond the campus to produce diverse and important social benefit.

Professor James Thompson concludes: “This competition also strengthens The University of Manchester’s commitment to social responsibility and for the good of society in general.”

Heather Thompson, Director of Licensing at UMIP commented: “Not all UMIP projects are IP based, we are also working within The University of Manchester looking at untapped alternative ideas, and these winners exemplify new ventures with a social purpose.”

Awards judge and MD of Manchester based Frontier PR Ltd, David Innes-Edwards, commented: “It was a privilege to spend a day with such innovative and passionate individuals, and I’d like to thanks UMIP and The University of Manchester for inviting Frontier PR to be involved.

“As a result of the Grand Prix Frontier PR will be working with One Day Like This and helping them take their exciting digital walking tours to the worlds Manchester music fans. We can’t wait to get started.”