St Ives Town Deal Enterprise Grants scheme is seeking expressions of interest from organisations to create a new flagship centre for providing high quality training, technology and digital skills opportunities in the town.
Part of the St Ives Town Deal regeneration programme, the project will be funded through a new £1 million Training and Skills Capital Fund.
Town Deal enterprise grant co-ordinator, Elizabeth Gilbert, said: “Applicants will need to show how they will engage with skills providers and explain how their project will enable better training and skills access in St Ives and fuel growth in the digital/tech sector, making sure that every resident has access to the digital and data skills required in the modern world.”
Building on the work of Cornwall Council’s Digital Futures Programme and the Digital Skills Partnership Strategy, the new centre will be expected to:
- Improve access to digital technologies for young people and adults in the St Ives Town Deal area through improved access to training and skills development opportunities.
- Increase the number of young people and adults with relevant skills for employment and entrepreneurship
- Increase the number of start-ups/scale-ups being helped with digital skills awareness and provision
- Ensure more local businesses have access to local people with appropriate training, qualifications and skills, including digital skills
- Help local businesses to grow and participate in the digital economy.
As well as enabling access to emerging creative digital technologies, including VR and rapid product prototyping and testing; the new centre could offer shared technical support for recording and filming and editing and managing web and other platforms, and provide training spaces, workspace and meeting/collaboration space for use by the local community and start-ups or micro businesses.
The Training and Skills Capital Fund will provide up to £1 million towards the capital cost of providing the new centre, such as building works and equipment. Other costs, such as salaries, software and training provision must come from other sources.
The centre must be located within the St Ives Town Deal area.
The deadline for submitting expressions of interest is 9am on Monday, August 21. For more information contact Elizabeth Gilbert at liz.gilbert@cornwall.gov.uk
