Evaluation of Entrepreneurial Futures
Client: University of Exeter
Duration: 8 months
Funder: UK Shared Prosperity Fund (Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Good Growth Programme)
Evaluation approach
The Social Research Unit was commissioned by the University of Exeter to provide a summative evaluation which would enable the University of Exeter and partners to evidence project impacts and effectiveness. The evaluation was based on the principle that the UoE team undertook routine project monitoring, which was compiled and supplied to the SRU to inform the evaluation. This monitoring provided insight into progress against the outcome targets, if the outputs were successfully delivered and milestones met. The evaluation provided insights to better understand how and why outcomes have been met or exceeded, the impacts, and whether anticipated benefits had been realised. The evaluation included a comprehensive process evaluation alongside a quantitative causal impact evaluation. Both aspects were informed by a combination of desk based and primary research including:
Individual interviews with delivery partners
Individual interviews with businesses
Case studies of supported businesses
Online survey for businesses
Outcomes and impacts
The project made substantial progress towards a number of its outputs and outcomes, and projected data suggests it is on track to meet its longer term 2030 targets.
Evidence from interviews with business beneficiaries suggest that the project had a positive impact in several areas such as networking opportunities, access to expertise, knowledge transfer, production and innovation.
Delivery partner interviews revealed that the project was perceived to provide value for money, largely due to the free access to facilities, events, and other support opportunities for businesses.
Overview
Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (CloS) was identified as an area lagging behind the rest of the UK in attracting economic investment, both as a measure of business expenditure on RD&I (0.35% of GDP in 2018 compared to 1.73% nationally) and in real-term awards of government funding. The University of Exeter led on the Entrepreneurial Futures project, and worked alongside the University of Plymouth, Falmouth University and Duchy College, to deliver a project that aimed to support RD&I growth in the local region. The project focused on a number of key areas, such as clean energy, net zero & biodiversity, and immersive technologies, and also featured two flagship RD&I initiatives: an Environmental Living Laboratory and a Geotracer facility.
The project aimed to develop an RD&I led entrepreneurial ecosystem so that businesses/entrepreneurs had an increased ability to undertake R&D and were more attractive to external RD&I investment. The project set out to generate new knowledge, technologies, and innovations, leading to the development of new products, processes, and services that could improve productivity, efficiency, and competitiveness across strategic sectors.