Name:
Peter Wood

Position:
Chief Executive of Sheffield Technology Parks

When were the Sheffield Technology Parks built?
After the coal and steel industries declined there was a restructuring by Sheffield City Council and the technology parks were born out of that. They have been in business for 18 years and were set up to help create the next generation of industry, and look at establishing a high technology sector in Sheffield.

The first site was here in the city centre and then a year later the one at Don Valley opened separately. In 1996 they were brought together, and as well as supporting companies in the Parks we started to look at supporting other businesses in the region.

How have the Parks grown in the last 18 years?
When the region got Objective 1 status a regional strategy was put together about how to spend the money. We took that opportunity to seek their help. We moved away from just being a managed workspace and concentrated on being an incubator and selecting only high growth companies which would grow and be able to move out into the local economy. We had to focus on one of the key Objective 1 areas and we focussed on the creative and digital industries.
From 2002-today we have changed from just being a managed workspace; we now have a pre-start area, we only take CDI companies and high growth companies who will hopefully outgrow us. Objective 1 gave us £1.5 million over five years. This allowed us to get more staff, do more research and more marketing to make people aware of what we do. All this transition has happened in five years and now we are looking at sustainability without the need for grant finance

What can Sheffield offer as a business location?
Sheffield is officially recognised as the number one place in this country to start a business. There is grant support; it offers a low cost start up investment and a good lifestyle, which all make it attractive. In the last 18 years about 15% of our occupiers have been people who came from outside the region

As South Yorkshire attracts an increasing number of businesses, is there enough workspace to meet the demand?
"ict active will and should make a difference. It’s a massive opportunity and from our point of view we see ourselves as being a leader (in ICT). Back in 1996 our grant gave us the ability to make our offices connected with interactive telephony and internet and we joined our sites together and raised the bar in terms of technology. With speculative developments ICT is not something that is considered but it is something that buildings need. ict active can be a badge for buildings and once the mark is active it will be another thing for businesses to look for. They need to know they can walk into the building and it have what they want. We will certainly be looking to attach it to our buildings."

What do you think the main benefits of ict active will be? “ict active
ict active will and should make a difference. It’s a massive opportunity and from our point of view we see ourselves as being a leader (in ICT). Back in 1996 our grant gave us the ability to make our offices connected with interactive telephony and internet and we joined our sites together and raised the bar in terms of technology. With speculative developments ICT is not something that is considered but it is something that buildings need. ict active can be a badge for buildings and once the mark is active it will be another thing for businesses to look for. They need to know they can walk into the building and it have what they want. We will certainly be looking to attach it to our buildings.