Fourteen local businesses that have been supported by Keele University’s Business Gateway have been nominated in the upcoming Staffordshire Chamber of Commerce Business Awards.

The Staffordshire Chamber of Commerce Business Awards recognise Staffordshire's best businesses, providing a platform for them to showcase their achievements and share their stories.

Keele University’s Business Gateway offers a wide range of opportunities for businesses, particularly SMEs in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire, to access professional and academic support to grow, develop and innovate.

Business nominated that have been supported Keele University include Parker Software, the UK’s leading provider of live chat software and business process automation. Parker Software are nominees in both The International Trade Award and Science, Technology and Innovation Award. The business took part on the Keele Research and Innovation Support Programme (KRISP)* and Santander Universities programme, assisting in innovative projects and long term recruitment as a direct influence.

The Keele Research and Innovation Support Programme (KRISP) has been designed to support businesses that are thinking about, or are currently in the process of, developing a new product, process or service. By providing dedicated human resource and academic expertise, Keele University can deliver the expertise, focus and processes that will help your business innovate and grow.

Roxanne Abercrombie, Content Manager at Parker Software, and a previous intern herself, praised the schemes: “It is a wonderful opportunity for businesses and graduates alike, and has enabled us to find a great addition to the team who would never have crossed our path had we used a traditional recruitment method”

Click Dealer, a nominee in the Most Promising New Start-Up Award, has seen growth year-on-year and is a participant on the University’s Mercia Centre for Innovation Leadership programme (MCIL)**. The MCIL programme is fully-funded and has no cost attached to the business other than time to attend the sessions. The programme is part of a range of specialist support and funding opportunities available to Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent businesses by Keele University.

To see the full list of nominees, visit www.staffordshirechambers.co.uk

Winners will be announced at Staffordshire county showground on 5 July 2018.

Keele University is also proud to be sponsors of the Environment/Low Carbon category. This award recognises organisations that can demonstrate a proactive approach to protecting the environment and reducing their carbon footprint.

To find out how Keele University can support your businesses, contact the University’s Business Gateway on 01782 733001 or by emailing business.gateway@keele.ac.uk.

*The Keele Research and Innovation Support Programme (KRISP) is part financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), as part of the England 2014 to 2020 European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) Growth Programme.

**The Mercia Centre for Innovation Leadership (ref: 32R15P00229) is part-funded from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds England Growth Programme 2014-2020.