Ten new businesses join Fellowship Accelerator Programme

Digital platforms for the Chinese educational sector, a hi-tech board game for visually impaired people and an intuitive mobile app that can be used at crime scenes are some of the latest products and ideas being developed with the support of DigitalCity.

A total of ten start-up businesses have been accepted onto the latest Fellowship Accelerator Programme.

The three-month programme works with early-stage businesses and offers funding of up to £5,000, as well as workshops and bespoke consultancy as they develop their product or idea.

Led by Teesside University, in partnership with the Tees Valley Combined Authority, and part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), DigitalCity has been responsible for helping to create some of the region’s most successful companies.

Since its launch, DigitalCity has awarded a total of 365 Fellowships - some of which have developed into the Tees Valley’s most successful digital businesses.

The latest cohort of DigitalCity fellows are:

• Britannia Educational Intelligent Systems – An educational technology and consultancy service creating apps for parents, students and teachers in the Chinese market
• Crime Scene Assist – Developing a mobile app for frontline responders at crime scenes
• EnerG Solutions Ltd – A digital energy assessment tool for the construction industry
• Wander Films – Developing innovative video marketing and vlog packages
• Go Roar International Ltd – A social media travel app
• The Teaching Hub Ltd – Web and app platform for recruitment of school staff
• Greentree On-line – An ethical web and social media consultancy for community groups and small businesses
• Deivos Ltd – Multi-platform digital content production and distribution in the SVOD market
• Alpha Globe – Creating a ‘Wellbeing Alphabet’ app for children
• Across The Board Games – Developing a tech-based board game linked to an app that will be accessible to the visually impaired.

Pam Bennett, co-founder of Across the Board Games, said: 'Our ‘Discuss’ board game is innovative in that it enables the visually impaired to experience a fun, highly interactive game with non-disabled players. We are exploring routes to market and are hoping that the Fellowship Accelerator will help us to commercialise our product.'

James Stoddart, whose business, Britannia Educational Intelligent Systems is creating educational apps for parents, students and teachers in the Chinese market, said: 'The Fellowship will really help, not just because of the funding, but the support it will give us to scale the business in the right way.'

Scott Watson, Innovation Manager at DigitalCity, said: 'This is probably the most diverse group of businesses we have worked with for some time. We’re delighted to be supporting them as we think that all of them have bags of potential.

'This programme has supported 25 of the most innovative start-up businesses in the Tees Valley in the last 12 months. We look forward to helping this group unlock their potential and are confident that they will make a strong contribution to the Tees Valley’s future economic success.'

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• Business
• DigitalCity