Taking the lead through tough times

We are taking the lead in helping businesses and individuals through the credit crunch.

Vice-Chancellor Graham Henderson has been invited to three national events to speak about what the University can do.

Our measures to help businesses include halving invoice turnaround time to help suppliers with their cash-flow, running future management masterclasses to help companies cope with the recession and offering generous bursaries to postgraduates and those new to higher education.

Professor Henderson said: 'We’re accelerating some of our planned activities to give a further boost to the local community, such as having a second campus base in Darlington. We’re looking for temporary accommodation to start a range of courses this coming autumn and not waiting until we have a new purpose-built development. We believe there’s a lot the region can do to pull together to beat the recession.'

£17m new dental technology and sports centre In a further move, work is starting later this month on a £17m project to build a new dental technology training and sport therapy centre, complete with facilities for the community shared with the NHS. This will create 150 construction and auxiliary jobs over the next 15 months.

A third new teaching block is also in the pipeline to provide for an unprecedented number of part-time students on campus.

One North East Chairman, Margaret Fay, welcomed the steps saying: 'The region’s businesses are the lifeblood of the economy and it is crucial that we act now to provide real help to support them through the downturn and see them emerge stronger on the other side. This campaign is an example of how public organisations, private businesses and academia can work collectively to support the North East during the recession. This is a practical approach the University is taking to help during these challenging times and it is very much welcome.'

The three conferences Professor Henderson has been asked to speak at are:

• The Marketing and Communication Challenges of Engaging with Business on Thursday March 26, organised by UniversitiesUK, the higher education and external relations association HEERA and the Chartered Institute of Public Relations at UniversitiesUK’s conference centre, London.
• The annual conference of the British Universities Finance Directors Group at Leeds metropolitan University on Monday 6 April.
• Employer Engagement: How far should universities go to meet the needs of employers? organised by the Times Higher Education magazine at the Commonwealth Club, London, on 13 May.

16 steps from Teesside University to help the region through the recession 1 Halving the time it takes us to pay bills – with weekly payments of all authorised invoices. 2 Delivering Future Management masterclasses to give employers new skills on managing through the recession. 3 Bringing forward £2.2m of work on University buildings. 4 Starting work on the construction of a new dental technology training and sports therapy centre this month, creating 150 building trade jobs. 5 Accelerating plans for a second campus base to provide courses in Darlington, bringing higher education to the west of the Tees Valley. 6 Appointing a team of business account managers to develop relationships with business and promote a businesslike culture. 7 Introducing subsidised training packages with employers and FE colleges to help workforce development. 8 Providing low-cost business start-up incubation units on campus to graduates and others launching new enterprises and bringing jobs to Middlesbrough. 9 Supporting the flagship DigitalCity initiative to keep high-tech jobs and companies in the region. 10 Offering temporary University posts to skilled personnel facing redundancy in regional companies and organisations. 11 Stepping up Knowledge Transfer Partnerships and shorter Collaborative Innovation Partnership (CIPs), to help firms introduce new ideas. 12 Providing generous bursaries worth £2,400 for postgraduate students. 13 Delivering free taster sessions in our June - August Summer University to help people with career changes and developing new skills. 14 Introducing special initiatives to support the process industry, including a new Science to Business Hub supported by the European Union. 15 Offering new bursaries in partnership with One NorthEast for 'displaced' workers in the electronics, process and engineering sectors who can start postgraduate courses this summer, worth up to £11,050. 16 Providing careers advice to graduates for up to two years after they leave the University.

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