Seven free enterprise workshops remain for Teesside University students this autumn, taking participants from an early idea through testing, business planning, branding and pitching before a December showcase.
The university’s Spark! Student Enterprise Workshop Series opened on Wednesday 14 October with a session on creative thinking. It now continues every Wednesday from 21 October to 2 December, with each workshop running from 1.30pm to 3.30pm in the Bell Room on the Middlesbrough campus.
A route from curiosity to a workable idea
Spark! is open to all current Teesside University students. Participants do not need to run a business or arrive with a finished proposal. The programme is intended to give people room to explore an idea, work with others and learn how to test whether it could become something practical.
The remaining timetable starts on 21 October with a session about self-employment. A week later, students will look at validating an idea before moving into the Business Canvas on 4 November. The second half covers digital and tools on 11 November, online brand-building on 18 November, networking and pitching on 25 November, and launching an idea on a budget on 2 December.
Each subject deals with a different point where a promising idea can stall. Validation asks whether a proposed product or service meets a real need. A business model brings customers, costs and delivery into the same picture. Branding, networking and pitching then help students explain the idea clearly to other people.
LaunchFest puts the learning to work
The series leads into LaunchFest on Wednesday 9 December. Teesside University describes it as a student enterprise showcase and pitch competition, where participants can present their ideas, gain experience of pitching and compete for prizes worth up to £250.
Spark! is returning for a second year after a pilot in spring 2026. The university calls that pilot successful, although its announcement does not publish participant numbers, feedback scores or details of businesses created through the earlier programme.
The workshops sit within the university’s wider Launchpad offer for students and graduates. Teesside University says its enterprise support has helped launch more than 700 businesses which, by the end of 2024, generated nearly £120 million in annual turnover. It says around three quarters operate in digital and technology. Those are university figures; the supporting page does not set out the calculation method or provide an evaluation.
Who can take part
The autumn Spark! sessions are specifically for current Teesside University students, rather than a general public business course. The university’s wider enterprise team also works with graduates and people developing start-ups, with information and contact details available through Launchpad.
Students can find individual sessions through the university’s Student Futures events service. Places, booking deadlines and accessibility arrangements should be checked for each date because the main announcement does not state remaining capacity. It also does not name the workshop leaders, publish judging for LaunchFest or explain how the £250 prize offer will be divided.
What is confirmed is a clear sequence of practical sessions, with seven dates still ahead. For students who have been carrying an idea without knowing how to examine it, the programme offers a structured way to test the basics before deciding whether to take it further.