Entrepreneurial Campus: report

Ministerial Foreword

Evidence from around the world tells a compelling story of how entrepreneurship, when properly harnessed, can be a key driver of innovation and economic growth.

The publication of this blueprint for entrepreneurial campuses across Scotland marks our clear commitment to supporting entrepreneurship in our universities and colleges, in order to capitalise on the world-leading research and development work that already goes on, by inspiring and encouraging our students and faculty-members to engage with entrepreneurship and innovation learning.

I am confident that this blueprint will lead to more Scottish students going on to found their own start-ups or taking up employment with one of our scaling business, helping them to develop and grow while retaining their skills and entrepreneurial talent in Scotland.

By doing this, we will catalyse entrepreneurship and regional economic growth throughout Scotland making us more prosperous, more productive and internationally competitive.

We will build on the foundations already in place in our universities and colleges, our renowned, cutting-edge research and an active investment market, to embed a culture in which entrepreneurship is encouraged, supported and celebrate for what it is - the democratisation of business and enterprise success across different levels of society.

This publication marks an important milestone as a key action from our National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET), helping establish Scotland as a world-class entrepreneurial nation.

Our entrepreneurial campuses will provide opportunities for people who may not have the skills or experience necessary to start their own businesses. This will include mentoring, coaching, and networking, helping them build the knowledge they need to succeed as entrepreneurs.

They will bring together people from diverse backgrounds to share their knowledge, and ideas and to learn from one another, inspiring entrepreneurial outreach within each campus' local region.

Entrepreneurial campuses will also serve as a vital link between academia and industry, creating new opportunities for collaboration and knowledge transfer. This will help to bridge the gap between research and commercialisation, ensuring that Scotland's world-class research institutions are fully able to contribute to the growth and success of our economy.

The Scottish Government and its agencies are committed to supporting the development of new businesses and the expansion of existing ones. We recognize that entrepreneurs face many challenges, from securing funding to navigating complex regulatory environments.

Having entrepreneurial campuses across Scotland will help address some of these issues, equipping students and faculty-members with insights, knowledge and connections that will help them access the resources and support they need to overcome these challenges and flourish.

Our entrepreneurial campuses will both work alongside, and also provide a clear, accessible pathway to our Techscaler network - our national platform offering co-location opportunities in any of seven hubs around the country, and which is already delivering world-class commercial education to support the next generation of Scottish start-ups.

I am grateful to Ross Tuffee and Professor Joe Little for carefully working through the evidence of international best practice in order to set out the roadmap to take us forward. My thanks also to Scotland's academic institutions who have joined in our ambition and engaged in the development of the concept.

I look forward to us collectively embracing this opportunity to develop a network of entrepreneurial campuses over the coming decade, ready to welcome future entrepreneurs and start-ups launching their careers and supporting them as they flourish and grow in the years to come.

Neil Gray,

MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy

The Entrepreneurial Campus | The Higher Education Sector as a driving force for the

Entrepreneurial Ecosystem