NEWS
The Durham City accelerator programme has benefited 56 entrepreneurs so far .
ACCELERATORS Six very different start-ups get help to grow
Entrepreneurs from County Durham are set to benefit from a successful Durham City Incubator ( DCI ) accelerator programme .
The latest six companies on the programme together make up one of its most diverse cohorts yet , covering sectors including TV production , e-commerce , and FinTech – as well as value-driven social enterprises and awareness-raising training platforms .
The wide variety of start-up businesses and social enterprises hope to follow in the footsteps of Low Carbon Materials ( formerly Plastech Innovation / Sphera ), Elvet Recruitment and Rare Rockets , which have all completed the DCI programme since its inception in 2018 .
DCI is a joint venture between Durham University , New College Durham and Business Durham , the business support service of Durham County Council .
The programme works to help County Durham entrepreneurs launch start-ups with high growth potential and support new companies ( which have been trading for under 12 months ) to achieve their goals .
So far , the six-month accelerator programme has supported 56 entrepreneurs across seven previous cohorts . Many have gone on to establish successful businesses achieving national recognition and securing additional investment funding .
The companies from this latest cohort include Addressing Domestic Abuse ( CIC ), Dive into History , LEXI Menswear , Divergent Brains , Lonewolf Technologies and Ofdin .
THE STORY ’ S LOW CARBON ENERGY SOLUTION
Solar panels and ground source heat pumps have been installed at The Story as part of a series of low carbon measures . In 2020 , Durham County Council was awarded £ 1.5m from the European Regional Development Fund ( ERDF ) to install energy efficiency measures at The Story , which will bring the grade II listed Mount Oswald Manor House in Durham City back to life as a key new cultural venue .
Construction of the centre is well underway and , with £ 1m match funding from the council , the works include installing 291 solar panels , 60 ground source heat pumps , and a smart boiler system .
Renewables from these measures will provide almost 90 per cent of The Story ’ s heating demand and 60 per cent of its cooling demand .
This will reduce its overall energy consumption by 61 per cent and carbon emissions by 51 per cent , saving more than 100 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year when compared to a standard building of similar size .
The Story will transform the historic Mount Oswald into a site which will provide
The Story development will include 291 solar panels .
a secure future for the Durham Light Infantry Collection and almost six miles of archives , charting 900 years of local history , with the addition of an elegant wedding ceremony venue . It ’ s set to open in 2023 .
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