A pioneering higher educational institute that aims to transform the skills young people develop in schools, colleges and universities to create the next generation of entrepreneurs and managers is to open at UWE.
The Aldridge Institute will be the first of its kind in the UK and will pull together some of the entrepreneurial teaching already carried out at the Bristol Business School on UWE’s Frenchay Campus.
It will be a partnership between the university – which has an ambition to transform its own methods of teaching – and the Aldridge Foundation, an educational charity set up by Sir Rod Aldridge, the entrepreneur and founder of outsourced services group Capita, to help communities transform through entrepreneurship and enterprise.
The foundation, launched in 2006 by Sir Rod when he retired from Capita, already runs a number of academies. These will link into the Aldridge Institute and benefit from the new teaching methods and approach to entrepreneurialism it develops.
The Institute will also develop a ‘high flyers’ summer school programme Aldridge academy students showing a flair for becoming an entrepreneur.
It aims to create social change and community regeneration opportunities through enterprise and entrepreneurship to help young people to reach their potential and improve their communities.
The Aldridge Institute for Enterprise and Entrepreneurship was unveiled this week during a ceremony to mark the official opening of the flagship £55m Business School building, which house 6,000 students and 300 staff, by HRH The Duke of York.
UWE pro vice chancellor and executive dean of Bristol Business School & Bristol Law School Donna Whitehead said: “The Aldridge Institute for Enterprise and Entrepreneurship will shape the future of education policy, by changing thinking on how people teach and learn across schools, colleges and universities. 
“By pioneering enterprise education the institute will transform the futures of young people, supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs and creating a more successful economy.”
The search has now started for a world-class professor of enterprise & entrepreneurship to lead the institute. UWE students on its existing entrepreneur degree courses will attend the institute which, like the business school that houses it, feature open-plan workspaces, and meeting areas rather than traditional classrooms and lecture halls.
It will also work with local schoolchildren in enterprise clubs led by students and business mentors.
Sir Rod Aldridge was among the VIP guests for the Duke of York’s visit and spent about an hour with UWE Team Entrepreneurship students, talking to about 50 of them about his entrepreneurial career.
He also spent time with 20 students who are interested in taking Team Entrepreneurship into schools beyond the pilot already being undertaken in Aldridge Academies.
Sir Rod said: “I established the Aldridge Foundation because I’m passionate about transforming the life-chances of young people. I believe this can be achieved through education equipping them to develop an enterprising mind-set alongside gaining their academic qualifications. Through the schools in the Aldridge Education multi-academy trust we have ten years’ experience of doing just that.”
“Aldridge and the Bristol Business School at UWE share very similar vison and values. We have a collective focus on employability and tackling the issues around social exclusion. On developing innovative, evidence-based approaches to embedding enterprising skills in teaching and learning.”
The Duke of York, accompanied by UWE Vice Chancellor and CEO Prof Steve West, received a guided tour of facilities at Bristol Business School before unveiling a commemorative plaque marking the formal opening.
On his tour of the business school, the Duke met students and staff from the Business Advice Clinic, pictured top, where undergraduates work with mentors from industry to offer pro bono support to small enterprises, and the Team Entrepreneurship Hub, the home of a degree course dedicated to giving students the practical experience to launch and run their own ventures.
He was also shown the school’s Bloomberg Trading Room and a Technology Enhanced Active Learning space.
The building, which opened last year, offers a new approach to business and law education to benefit students and businesses in the region. It represents the biggest capital investment of UWE’s 2020 building programme and includes two showcase law courts, a city trading room, a business advice clinic, an incubator for Team Entrepreneurship students, technology enhanced and flexible learning spaces, and an external business engagement hub.
Prof West said: “We were proud to show the Duke that not only is Bristol Business School a striking modern building with state-of-the-art facilities but what goes on inside is equally impressive.
“Students are using the hugely expanded provision of technology enhanced active learning for greater co-creation and student-led problem solving, while a growing number of businesses are being welcomed through the doors to collaborate with staff and our ever more entrepreneurial students.
“It is this abundance of strong relationships with industry that sets UWE Bristol’s approach to business apart, with close collaboration ensuring the skills our graduates leave with are always relevant to employers’ rapidly evolving needs.”
