We’re proud to share that the Greater Manchester Further Education Innovation Programme (GMFEIP) has been recognised as a national case study of success in the newly published Innovation, Investment and Inclusion: A Framework for Regional Renewal report.
The report, produced by the Social Mobility Commission’s Economic Growth and Investment Group, highlights GMFEIP as a pioneering model for how further education can be more than vocational training, it can be a driver of innovation, productivity and inclusive economic growth.
Launched in 2024 through Innovate UK’s Further Education Innovation Fund, GMFEIP brings together all nine Greater Manchester colleges to embed innovation into teaching, workforce skills and business engagement. With new Innovation Centres in every borough, the programme reaches local SMEs and apprentices to make innovation more accessible helping businesses and civic society adopt new ideas, technologies and ways of working.
Through 121 advice sessions, workshops and courses such as The Innovation Literacy Programme, our local teams offer a welcoming front door to local employers across the region. Approximately 88% of these businesses say they’ve never received innovation support before, while 48% do not have an existing innovation strategy or plan – that’s where our team is on hand to support.
Coral Grainger, GMColleges Innovation Project Director, said “Being featured in this influential national report is a huge endorsement of the programme’s impact, showing how collaboration between education and enterprise can create stronger local economies and more opportunities for people across every community.”
This recognition reinforces what we already know: Greater Manchester is leading the way in building a region that learns, innovates and grows together.
Read more about the GMFEIP work via the Social Mobility Commission Report here.
