2022 Finalists

Project Student Housing is a start-up based out of Durham University.

Project Student Housing aims to bring the student property industry to the 21st Century. 

It looks to reduce the exploitative nature of the student housing industry and increase the standard of student housing nationally, through the use of technological advancements and data. The lower ATC shall increase ROI for landlords. The use of a tech-platform allows for all communications to be logged and recorded for transparency. Project Student Housing aims to address the issues facing both, students and, landlords. It aims to reduce rents, increase the standard of living for students, all while increasing ROI for landlords.

We are looking to put a dent into an industry worth £8bn.

Algaceutics is a science-technology based idea which aims to provide a solution to increased demand for plant-based lifestyles and move away from use of fertilizers on crops by recovering the nutrients from other industries co-products to grow microalgae. By utilizing microalgal biomass to provide nutrients for future crops and providing fine protein for human or animal consumption, Algaceutics aims to promote a cleaner and more sustainable economy and lifestyle choices. 

Heidi Boo is a sustainable preloved baby and children’s clothing business, offering high-quality and affordable clothing for parents, carers, and families. Heidi Boo offers all types of clothing, making it a go-to-place for restocking the children’s wardrobes.  

WEAREGREENCOW is a craft and cross-stitching business that promotes the art of cross-stitching across the North East. With an offer that includes pre-made and personalised cross-stitching as well as make your own kits, Steph is passionate about become a sustainable business and wants to get more people involved into crafts and become as in love as she is.

Sammy's Baking is a home based business selling delicious hand made cakes and goodies in Northumberland. Sam runs the business with the help of her parents and is committed to bringing tasty treats to the guests and visitors to Royal Northumberland Yacht Club in Blyth.

The Little Sleep Company is there to nurture better sleep for sleep deprived families, offering compassionate training to give babies confidence and security to sleep independently; providing parents the opportunity to reconnect and get some well deserved rest! Imogen is studying psychology and understands the the physical, mental and social impact poor sleep has on us including mood, relationships, cognition, risk of disease and even mortality. Imogen is committed to playing a proactive role in societal health, and what better place to start than sleep!

Keepin' It Reel Productions aim to establish the North East International Film Festival as one of the go-to festivals for British premieres to encourage tourism to the area and support the local North East economy. The festival attracts global filmmakers whilst maximising the opportunity to showcase local talent, companies and stunning film locations.

With a core ethos focused on equality, inclusivity, diversity collaboration and participation, Lisa-Marie is dedicated to using North East international Film Festival to shine a brighter light on the diversity and talent in the region as a whole.

Jasmine Canapes are a bespoke events catering company specialising in handcrafted canapés for any occasions including a wide range of unique party platters and creative table styling packages. Jasmine is committed to bringing a fusion of her family traditional recipes with her own British style of home cooked food served beautifully in professional table styling packages.

Sustainable Business Services is on a mission to work with organisations and individuals to be more sustainable, to make a positive impact on the environment and North East communities by supporting business to address their environmental impact. The range of services James offers will support, co-create and inspire partners, clients and stakeholders to collectively develop sustainable, innovative business practices to drive collective impact and financial performance consistently.

Sarah is championing the benefits of red light therapy as an alternative therapy to pain relief with her business of red therapy beds. This therapy uses red and near infrared light at specific wavelengths, to give energy to cells in and below the surface which has an anti-inflammatory and cellular rejuvenation effect.

Sarah is committed to making more widely available this non-invasive, personalised and innovative therapy in the North East which will help people who live in pain every single day to have a better life.

Dare2byou offers a personal development support service aimed at disabled people who want to be in control of the small daily habits and goals they set for themselves. Using her expertise in coaching and personal experience of living with a physical disability, Angie uses her coaching and personal experience along with her core values of independence, honesty, dedication, vibrancy and innovation with clients to help them improve their quality of life. Angie is dedicated to empowering people with disabilities to connect with each other and learn how to focus, find balance and take steps towards living their purpose every day.

The Blooming Platypus is a design innovation consultancy with a passion to help future-proof organisations, their business model and activities by creating opportunities using design thinking, tools and methods. Offering core services that can be tailored and combined to deliver a bespoke service plan, based on our clients’ needs including rapid design interventions, live projects, consultancy, innovation training and keynotes, Justine is dedicated to highlighting the often behind the scenes creative, proactive and innovative approaches to business development.

Strong Point is a card based Trivia Game which we devised to keep families, friends & groups entertained in a simple, fun, exciting, social environment with a twist! Not only do players earn points by answering their own questions correctly but can earn bonus points by predicting how many of their opponents will answer correctly on their turn.

Gill and Si are committed to bring Strong Point to the homes of everyone in the North East but its not just about what you know but who knows what you know ....

Tutors for Life is a tutoring agency focused on bridging the gap in educational inequality with an emphasis on SEND students by ensuring high-quality education using a rigorous tutor selection process and by building strong relationships with our students and their families; implementing a variety of payment plans to aid accessibility while also educating parents and students alike on how to access free learning resources in addition to avoiding payment scams currently rampant in the industry.

Shannon and Dan are committed to work with schools, councils and governing bodies to provide accessible and high-quality education to help combat the inequality found within the educational system.

Fiona Surrey Marketing is concerned with helping you navigate marketing in the digital age. The company helps you to not only create a digital presence but also run successful marketing campaigns to boost conversion. I aim to help your business grow and expand digitally. Flying high with a world class mindset, Fiona Surrey Marketing creates core values that brings clients branding and digital campaigns to life, taking that leap into a world of dynamic change. Working in partnership with her clients, Fiona steps into both our clients and customers shoes, walking that journey together.

Set up originally to help businesses with their marketing campaigns to help boost sales, Fiona has created a purpose over profit business to change the dynamics of how we work supporting our educational and charity sectors and sustainable ethical businesses.

OGRE Studio is a brand and design practice leveraging creative bravery, big thinking and brand strategy for social and commercial change. Renowned for their bold, stand-out work that challenges and champions the value of people, society and the planet, Ogre Studios works across the North East.

Fyto was created to enable small-scale and hyper-local hydroponic vertical farming. Hydroponic vertical farming exists today in huge warehouses which require a lot of capital input, running costs and still require long distance distribution models. Rather than shipping food nationally and globally, Fyto strongly believe that food should be grown and distributed as locally as possible as the technology now exists to do so, hence drastically reduce carbon emissions from food miles, cut down food and plastic waste by working closely with our customers and providing a local source of fresh, affordable, tasty and nutritious food to all.

Dash Media design and develop unique websites, form eye catching brands and generate highly effective marketing for hundreds of clients throughout the UK and beyond.

Dash Media provide a bespoke, client by client service, selling fully bespoke websites that are built from the ground up, supplying every client with their own dedicated project manager, designer and developer, a full and tailored CRO service to clients who wish to ensure their site is converting fully, including ongoing monitoring website use and using the information to make changes to layout, design, and functionality in order to increase the conversion of users to customers and a dedicated hosting service providing in-house marketing and social media packages allowing us to provide full marketing and support long after a website has gone live.

Reece and the team are committed to expanding their services within the small business, charities and education industry, providing free or discounted websites and marketing services and platforms and portals for educational purposes and courses providers.

Bind CRM is an affordable client relationship management software that aims to bring what would typically be 4-5 different subscriptions into one, affordable, place for small businesses - to save them time and money. Features of the software range from social media marketing and email/sms marketing tools to invoicing and customer profiles making it a one-stop place to keep your business operations clear and together. Affordable and bespoke integrations can be created to suit every business need.

James from Bind CRM is dedicated to take Bind CRM success in the UK to the American and European markets whilst expanding his range of product features to remain innovative and response to customer changing needs.

Semester Student planner creates change for students through providing them with the tools to proactively work on their wellbeing and personal growth.

Nathan and Joe are committed to make Semester Student Planner the leading student wellbeing brand within the UK, supporting over 20,000 students and providing positive change within the education space.