Innovas Consulting has been appointed by Central Bedfordshire Council and the University of Bedfordshire to carry out an evaluation of the Innovation Bridge project, which has been part funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

The project is managed by the council and delivered by the university. It seeks to support businesses and new starts in central Bedfordshire to increase levels of innovation and to support knowledge transfer between the academic and business bases. Services business are able to access include diagnostic to ascertain business requirements and to identify their innovation path, twelve hours of expert academic support and development of an action plan by a university Business Partnership Manager.

The evaluation will examine the project rationale, delivery, impact and value for money, and alignment with other business support schemes. This includes reviewing the effectiveness of project activity in achieving its objectives, assessing project performance against initial expectations and setting out recommendations for the management and delivery of future projects.

The work adds to Innovas’ extensive track record in evaluation and in working with and advising universities. Other recent assignments include an evaluation of EMIN Enterprise’s Partnerships in Knowledge Transfer scheme, delivered by three East Midlands universities, and an evaluation of the University of Derby’s Let’s do Business SME and enterprise support scheme.

For more information contact: Simon Hallam:

T: 01606 55122 | M: 07411 371 810 | E: simon.hallam@innovas.co.uk