Meet the local organisations supporting you
By Sarah Cronk
As a business or a freelancer, you can often find yourself asking “where do I go to get the support I need?” or “who’s looking out for me?”. Well, there are actually so many organisations local to Eastbourne and East Sussex on your side, trying to provide support where they can.
So that you have the resources you need, we’ve put together a list of the local bodies doing their bit to support the digital sector in Eastbourne and beyond. No matter what stage your career or your business is at, there is someone out there who you can turn to for support.
Eastbourne Chamber of Commerce
Eastbourne UnLtd is the largest town chamber of commerce in the South East. Their mission is to help businesses of all sectors and sizes grow their businesses through a range of support, mentoring and business networking.
Sussex Chamber of Commerce
Sussex Chamber is the largest business membership organisation in Sussex. They are leading the development of the Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) for Brighton and Hove, East Sussex and West Sussex.
As an LSIP Trailblazer, they have worked closely with partners, employer networks and local business leaders across the area to investigate and articulate the skills needed to support these organisations, improve the skills of local people, and increase the productivity of the local economy.
The first of their commissioned “Deep Dive” reports, focusing on the digital sector, provides a ‘snapshot’ view from employers and understanding skills gaps. The investigations for this report were undertaken by TechNative Digital, whose mission is to close the digital and tech skills gap. They are developing their own industry-led training programmes and supporting education providers in engaging with tech professionals.
Locate East Sussex
Locate East Sussex support businesses moving into East Sussex to grow and succeed. It is the official inward investment agency for East Sussex, funded by the County Council together with the District and Borough Councils of East Sussex and, until 2023, the European Union’s Regional Development Fund.
Their team will help you to access the right funding in the form of grants and business loans to help your business thrive. They can also help you find the best industrial units, office space or coworking space available locally.
Skills East Sussex
Skills East Sussex (SES) is the county’s strategic body for employment and skills. The group aims to improve local employment and skills levels to increase economic prosperity in East Sussex, and there is a specific Creative and Digital Task Group set up for the creative, media and digital sectors.
South East Local Enterprise Partnership
The SELEP is established to provide the clear vision and strategic leadership to drive sustainable private sector-led growth and job creation. They provide business support through Business East Sussex, whether it’s for starting a business, growing a business, finance, import/export, or net zero.
Silicon Brighton
Silicon Brighton is a community-led initiative supporting digital growth in the South East. Working hand-in-hand with the local tech community, they provide individuals with free opportunities for networking, training, up-skilling and development, helping them to take their careers and businesses forward. They also head up Diverse Sussex, aligning our common goal of ensuring everyone has equal access to opportunities in Sussex’s technology sector.
Wired Sussex
Based in Brighton, Wired Sussex supports the digital, media and technology sectors across Sussex. Thousands of companies and freelancers come together to make up the regional network.
Investigations into our digital sector have been undertaken this year by Wired Sussex, commissioned by Locate East Sussex, and the findings are out now. Phil Jones and Josh Siepel's report explores the Creative, Digital and Technology (CDT) sector in East Sussex, identifying areas of activity and opportunities for growth and future investment.
TechResort
TechResort is an Eastbourne-based CIC that shares digital skills to improve lives. They help a range of different groups including adult learners, businesses, young people, schools and colleges, as well as councils and government. They provide face-to-face learning and making sessions at their hub in Eastbourne.
And then there’s lil ol’ us…
Chalk Eastbourne
We are a local community for the digital sector in Eastbourne. We aim to improve the perception of Eastbourne, support young talent, and make recruitment easier for businesses here. We want to bring people together and ensure we’re all working in the same direction.
If we’ve missed any resources from this list that you find useful, do let us know.
