VentureVersity is a programme offering up to £60K in funding and support, delivered by Loughborough University as part of the Research England-funded Forging Ahead initiative, helping University staff across the Midlands turn research into real ventures. Our free Find events were informal mixers where researchers could explore whether their research has commercial potential. No pitch required, just curiosity.
✓ All Mixers Complete. Applications to the programme are still open.
Open to University staff and researchers at the 16 Midlands partner universities, including PhD researchers, postdocs, research fellows, technicians and academics.
Kicked off the July series in Shropshire, bringing together the VentureVersity team and researchers at Harper Adams University's Edgmond campus.
✓ CompletedAn early-evening mixer in Leicester city centre for researchers from the University of Leicester, De Montfort University and beyond.
✓ CompletedHosted at NTU's enterprise hub for researchers at Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham.
✓ CompletedA lunchtime virtual session hosted with Cranfield University.
✓ CompletedA lunchtime mixer in central Birmingham at Aston University's Enterprise Hub, for researchers across the West Midlands.
✓ CompletedThe series closed in Derby at the University of Derby's Creativity Lab.
✓ CompletedThank you to everyone who joined us this July. See what's next: Connect Events →
Coming SoonIn autumn 2026, VentureVersity Connect events will bring selected projects together with the wider Midlands innovation ecosystem, entrepreneurial leads, collaborators, clients and investors, at regional hub showcases. Check back here or on the homepage for dates.
Can't make an event? Applications to the programme are open until 31 July 2026.
Apply to the Programme →Questions about eligibility, IP protection or how the programme works? See the VentureVersity FAQ.
