The University of York was founded to serve the public good; a strong social purpose, drawing on the City of York’s distinct Quaker heritage of practical philanthropy and social reform. Today, embedding enterprise across our University is a key example of how we put that founding purpose into practice, equipping individuals to create meaningful change for themselves and their communities.

Modern economic and societal challenges demonstrate the importance of adaptable, inclusive innovation. Building resilient economies requires finding practical ways to make communities safer, healthier, and more sustainable, while ensuring broader representation across entrepreneurship. The University of York believes in the power of enterprise and entrepreneurship as a driver for this change, to deliver better economic and social outcomes for everyone.

Led by our Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Enterprise, Professor Kiran Trehan, York delivers a University-wide approach that spans the full entrepreneurial journey supporting a student, staff or local entrepreneur’s first idea, through to post-investment growth.

Action and impact

Enterprise learning is embedded in our pedagogy. More than 500 undergraduate students took our Business Planning and Sustainable Entrepreneurship module in 2024/25, working in 70+ interdisciplinary teams to develop venture ideas addressing real sustainability challenges. Students engaged with customers, tested markets, built financial forecasts and developed the resilience employers demand. Outcomes are measurable: module students exceeded peer academic averages by 5%, and 93% rated the teamwork project valuable or extremely valuable. As one student noted, the module provided “important tools and skills that will be essential to the future of my business, such as how to calculate the market size and how to design the operational processes. Also, the sustainability aspect of the module is something that I’ll always take forward with me, to make sure that my businesses are not just generating a profit but are genuinely as sustainable as possible”.

Alongside venture creation, our Community Engaged Learning (CEL) programme provides practical consultancy experience across local non-profit and civic sectors. Students work directly with community partners on live projects embedded within academic modules. In 2024/25, 538 students completed CEL modules, such as the Environmental Sustainability Clinic, while student-led York Community Consulting delivered 10 projects totalling 8,030 hours of consultancy. This dual approach gives students hands-on problem-solving experience while delivering direct operational support to local organisations.

York is the anchor institution for enterprise in York & North Yorkshire. Our ecosystem includes York Science Park, Phase One Incubator, Enterprise Works and Barclays Eagle Labs. Our Commercialisation team works with academic staff to turn research outputs into products and services that positively benefit society and our student enterprise team, based in Careers, provide entrepreneurial teaching programmes to equip students with the skills, knowledge, and confidence to turn ideas into impactful ventures. 

Speaking about her experience of being part of the Phase One incubator programme, recent Dragon’s Den contestant Belle Richardson said “Phase One has been incredible for me and for SealStop. The networking has been invaluable, and the support from the team has been exactly what I needed. Before launching SealStop I had no business experience at all. They guided us, they nurtured us, and they helped us grow into the company you see today.”

Our Shared Prosperity Fund “Innovate York” programme  supported 125 businesses – including regional ventures like Wild Bee Flower Farm – launched four start-ups, developed 17 new products and services, and created 12 new jobs. Overall, we supported over 880 SMEs in total, through Enterprise Works and our Accelerator partnership with Barclays Eagle Labs.

In 2024/25, our researchers shaped national conversations on women founders, ethnic minority-led businesses, social enterprise, food systems and inclusive growth. Our female entrepreneurship research – engaging the Combined Authority, major banks and regional business support organisations – revealed 23,562 fewer self-employed women than men in the region, alongside an opportunity worth up to 165,000 jobs and £2.6 billion in regional economic value. The local Growth Hub adapted its regional support programmes directly in response and we have since worked across the business support community to launch a 10 point plan for female entrepreneurship in York & North Yorkshire to mitigate the barriers identified in the research.

Lessons and insights

Delivering this regional impact has reshaped how we operate. One of the most important lessons we have learned is the value of partnerships built around shared purpose. In an enterprise and commercial environment, partners can naturally come with different objectives, but being clear about our values, and working with organisations that can align around them, has been fundamental to building partnerships that deliver lasting impact.

We have also challenged ourselves to think differently about what entrepreneurs really need from a university. The skills and capabilities required to support new ventures are well understood, but often the greatest barriers are simpler: connectivity and access to clients. Our network is one of the University’s greatest assets, so the question has become: how do we mobilise those connections to give entrepreneurs the opportunities, introductions and credibility they need to thrive?

It takes a village to raise a child, and a community to raise a business. Once that community is established, it begins to create its own momentum, generating connections, peer-to-peer learning, advice and signposting that continually enrich the wider network. We saw that recently when we hosted a Dragons’ Den viewing party for a successful company from our community. The number and range of people who had played a part in that company’s journey demonstrated just how powerful that collective support can be.

Future vision

We are continuing to strengthen the infrastructure around our entrepreneurial community. Our Accelerator partnerships have expanded with the addition of a University of York NatWest Accelerator Hub, helping us connect entrepreneurs, businesses and expertise across the region. We are also planning satellite hubs in each Faculty, alongside programmes designed to support key sectors for local economic growth.

Our next step is to apply this approach on a global scale. By working more closely across our international campuses, we can embed a more global mindset throughout our enterprise activity and create new routes into international markets for our entrepreneurial community. The recent launch of the Institute for Good Society at our Mumbai campus also reinforces our wider commitment to research, innovation and enterprise that generates public benefit.

While the metrics and initiatives demonstrate scale, our THE Award shortlisting reflects what being a university for public good means in practice. It represents academics who are supported to translate research into societal impact; students who view entrepreneurship as a practical career path rather than an exception; and a regional business community that works with the University as a genuine co-creator of growth.

Our big ambition is to make enterprise everybody’s business,creating a culture in which ideas, connections and opportunities can move more freely across the University, our region and our global community.

The University of York’s experience demonstrates that building an entrepreneurial university is about more than supporting start-ups. It requires a shared vision, strong partnerships and a commitment to making entrepreneurial opportunities accessible across the institution and beyond.

NCEE’s Entrepreneurial University Award recognises universities that are embedding entrepreneurship within their strategy, culture and practice. Through reflection and external assessment, the Award helps institutions recognise their achievements, demonstrate their impact and identify opportunities for further development.