A coalition including Keele University and 14 other Midlands university partners have launched a bold new initiative that is set to revolutionise how research and innovation are translated into real-world impact across the region. 
 
Forging Ahead – led by Loughborough University and Midlands Innovation – will radically enhance the commercialisation ecosystem, supercharging entrepreneurial activity, scaling innovation, and creating dynamic new pathways for academic ideas to become high-growth ventures. 
 
This collaborative programme aims to reshape how knowledge exchange, business creation, and investment attraction are delivered across the Midlands, unlocking the region’s research and innovation strengths and turning them into commercial success stories. By strengthening networks, building capacity, and supporting diverse talent, the initiative will drive inclusive economic growth and ensure that innovation benefits communities across the region. 
 
Delivered over five years in two phases, Forging Ahead will first focus on launching and expanding initiatives to nurture entrepreneurial talent, grow investment readiness, and embed a culture of innovation within and beyond universities. It will scale proven models and pilot new approaches that make commercialisation more accessible, inclusive, and impactful. 
 
In its second phase, the programme will deliver targeted interventions to accelerate innovation in strategically important sectors including Advanced Manufacturing, Creative and Digital, Health and Med Tech, and Net Zero. These efforts will help position the Midlands as a nationally leading hub for mission-driven innovation and support regional economic growth and national prosperity. 
 
The initiative is backed by £9.9 million from Research England’s Connecting Capability Fund, with an additional £6.1 million in matched support from the partner universities and regional stakeholders. But more than the funding, it is the depth of collaboration and commitment to transformation that makes Forging Ahead a model for reshaping regional innovation ecosystems. 
 
The Midlands region, with a population of 11 million and an economy equivalent to that of Denmark, has huge potential. Home to 11% of the UK's high-growth companies, it is a vibrant hub of innovation and enterprise. However, despite its significant contributions, the region only received a 5% share of total investment into these high-growth companies in 2020. 
 
This funding disparity is even more pronounced in university spinouts (companies that are spun-out of academic research). Since 2010, Midlands universities have spun out 169 companies—accounting for 14.5% of the UK total. Yet, in their first seven years, these Midlands ventures attract just 15p for every £1 raised by their counterparts in the Golden Triangle (London, Oxford, and Cambridge). This persistent disparity undermines the region’s ability to attract and retain the leadership talent critical for scaling innovative businesses. As a result, nearly 40% of Midlands university spinouts are founded outside the region, effectively turning the Midlands into an exporter of high-value jobs and R&D-driven enterprises. 
 
While the Midlands currently benefits from a strong university knowledge base and growing investment initiatives like Midlands Mindforge, a patient capital investment company launched by Midlands Innovation universities—talent and expertise remain fragmented.  

Forging Ahead will tackle these challenges through a coordinated portfolio of interventions: establishing a regional talent pool, scaling successful accelerators, promoting inward investment, and supporting innovation networks and priority sectors. This will strengthen the Midlands’ innovation and commercialisation ecosystem by attracting IP-rich spinouts and high-growth firms, driving economic growth and supporting the UK’s industrial strategy. 

Ultimately, Forging Ahead will create a legacy of collaboration between universities, spinout founders, and public and private sector partners—ensuring long-term support for innovation-led growth and positioning the Midlands as a globally competitive hub for enterprise and research commercialisation. 

The award announcement by UK Science Minister, Lord Vallance was made during a recent visit to the Midlands, where he visited some of the region’s most exciting university spin-out businesses.  

Lord Vallance said: “The Midlands has been a bustling hub of innovation ever since the Industrial Revolution, and still is now – boasting diverse strengths from the creative industries, to health, and clean energy.  

“The support and guidance we are announcing today will help draw out the game-changing ideas of this thriving region’s many researchers and scientists and transform them into the next generation of businesses that will draw in investment, create jobs and deliver growth, all supporting our Plan for Change.”  

Professor David Amigoni, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation at Keele said: “We are excited by the fantastic opportunity that being a partner to this hugely consequential project provides. The opportunity to link in increasingly ambitious ways across partner Technology Transfer Offices will be vital to Keele’s developing eco-system of commercialisation activities, including the development of spin outs; it will benefit our researchers, our Science Park, and our longer-term ambition to create a Keele Innovation District.” 
 
Professor Dan Parsons, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation at Loughborough University and Project Lead, said: "We are thrilled to receive this major investment in Forging Ahead, which will supercharge innovation-led growth across the Midlands. This funding empowers us to accelerate the development of high-potential spin-out businesses, support the commercialisation of cutting-edge research, and foster a dynamic ecosystem where innovation thrives, and where talent is drawn to and stays rooted in the region. 
 
“Forging Ahead exemplifies how collaborative leadership across Midlands universities can turn research excellence into real-world impact, boosting regional economic growth and national prosperity through innovation.”