BLACK AND minority ethnic (BAME) tech entrepreneurs in Bristol are to be given support in growing their businesses through a major bursary. 

The Breakthrough Bursary provides tech businesses led by owners from diverse backgrounds with access to strategic advice and coaching, including investment readiness training, mentoring, events and advice clinics.

The bursary is run by renowned technology incubator SETsquared Bristol, led by the University of Bristol, which is among the world’s highest ranking incubators for  high growth potential tech start-ups. Each bursary covers 75% of SETsquared Bristol’s Startup Membership for one year.

The initiative is being relaunched for the third year as part SETsquared Bristol’s commitment to promoting inclusion and equal opportunities in tech.

Since the Breakthrough Bursary was launched in 2019 nine companies have so far received the bursary and have raised a combined £300K in investment. 

Neciah Dorh, Co-founder and CEO of University of Bristol spin-out, FluoretiQ, is one of six companies to receive SETsquared Bristol support through the bursary in 2021.

He said: “The Breakthrough Bursary enabled us to join a community of amazing founders to learn from. I’m especially grateful for access to the Entrepreneurs in Residence and the Business Review Panels, both of which have really helped us refine our business strategy.”

Another of this year’s bursary recipients, Chen Mao Davies, Founder and CEO of breastfeeding support app LatchAid, said: “The Breakthrough Bursary has given me a huge amount of exposure as well as the support and network to grow very fast this year. It’s been a real boost of confidence for me.”

The tech industry is growing rapidly and contributes a huge amount to the UK economy. According to recent figures between 2010 and 2020 investment in the UK’s tech industry grew from £1.2bn to £11.3bn, with most of this increase taking place since 2015 when investment was £4.1bn. 

However figures also show that there is a lack of people from BAME backgrounds in UK boardrooms.  

The Breakthrough Bursary was one of a number of key recommendations from a SETsquared funded research report carried out by partners ACH and Up Our Street. Since launching the bursary, SETsquared Bristol’s BAME founders have increased from 14% to 23%, a significant figure compared to the UK average where less than 9% of senior tech leaders are from a BAME background.

Monika Radclyffe, SETsquared Bristol Centre Director, said: “We’re committed to unlocking innovation and true sector representation through diversity and inclusion initiatives like the Breakthrough Bursary. We look forward to welcoming new recipients to our community.”