Time to raise the bar and supercharge growth

“Don’t be meek” and “seize the opportunity” presented by a “once-in-a-lifetime” devolution deal were the defining messages from multi-platform publisher NET’s dinner at Jesmond Dene House yesterday (March 31), where nearly 80 of the region’s most influential business leaders and policymakers gathered in the Great Hall to examine the findings of NET’s landmark white paper and explore how the North East can unlock its economic potential.

And the venue could not have been more fitting.

As John Duns, director and joint owner of NET told guests in his opening remarks, the Great Hall once welcomed dignitaries from around the world to the home of Sir Andrew Noble – Lord Armstrong’s business partner and a former Royal Artillery captain – where deals were struck that helped establish Armstrong Whitworth as one of the world’s largest armaments firms on the eve of the First World War.

Back then, the North East was firmly on the global map.

Its factories, shipyards and coal mines powered Britain’s industrial ascent, while the Tyne and the Wear emerged as world-leading shipbuilding centres, exporting vast steel vessels across international markets.

The region was also a cradle of engineering innovation – from the birth of the modern railway to breakthroughs in electricity and steam turbines that would reshape industries worldwide.

Today, the shipyards and coal mines that once defined the region have long gone, even though their legacy has proved harder to shake. 

In their place, however, a new industrial revolution is beginning to emerge, driven by a £30 billion AI Growth Zone investment, the transition to green energy and a rapidly expanding advanced manufacturing and technology sector.

At the heart of this transformation sits the North East’s £4.2 billion devolution deal, offering the region a unique opportunity to reshape its economic future.

To help capitalise on that potential, NET’s white paper, Raising the bar: A blueprint to supercharge North East growth – which has been officially presented to the North East Combined Authority and is founded upon six high-level roundtable discussions – sets out a clear, business-led agenda for change. 

From boosting access to investment and improving transport connectivity to strengthening skills pathways and reshaping the region’s narrative, the document outlines a series of targeted actions designed to accelerate long-term growth.

And to showcase the white paper and underline its key pillars, the invite-only dinner – hosted by NET and Bdaily editor-in-chief Steven Hugill – brought together a panel of business leaders to examine its findings in greater detail.

Guests heard from Lee Hartley, co-founder and chief executive of Castrius Capital Partners; Fozia Saleem, chief executive of Magnitude Biosciences; Darush Dodds, director of corporate affairs and social value at Bowburn-headquartered Esh Group; Matt Charman, co-founder of London-based Northcote Equity; and David Blair, co-founder and chief executive of executive search and recruitment firm Blair West.

Lee, who played an integral role in shaping the white paper and hosted the series of roundtable discussions that informed its development, opened by reflecting on the scale of the opportunity presented by devolution.

Drawing comparisons with Manchester’s transformation over the past decade, he stressed the need for the North East to act with greater ambition.

He said: “When you look at what Manchester has done with devolution – the identity, the ambition, the economic change in a short space of time – I want some of that for the North East.

“They’ve grasped the opportunity. They’re not meek – and we can’t be either.”

Positioning the white paper as a practical, business-led framework for growth, Lee added: “This is about creating a business strategy, built by business, for the North East – and getting on with delivering it.

“If we do even half of it really well, we’ll be in a completely different place in ten to 15 years’ time.”

Addressing one of the principal issues identified by the white paper, Lee turned to the challenge of accessing capital, highlighting a clear gap between ambition and funding across the region.

He said: “One of the consistent themes that came out of all the discussions was access to capital.

“We weren’t talking to small businesses – these were established, scaling companies – but there was still a clear lack of access to funding in the region.”

Drawing on his own experience, he added: “I’ve spent 25 years raising capital and have raised more than £500 million.

“But only around five per cent of that has been deployed in the North East.”

To address this, Lee outlined the thinking behind the proposed Northern Growth Ladder – a new investment framework designed to support businesses at every stage of their growth journey.

He said: “It’s about creating a centre of gravity for investment – a collaborative network and long-term funding pathway that connects capital with opportunity.

“Each rung of the ladder is designed for a different stage of growth, from early-stage businesses right through to those looking to scale significantly.”

Highlighting a gap in the current funding landscape, he added: “We’re relatively well served up to around £3 million or £4 million, but beyond that there’s a real gap.

“We want to be able to support businesses looking for £5 million through to £500 million – and that’s not as unrealistic as it might sound.

“If we can bring together the right investors, the right networks and the right businesses, we can accelerate growth very quickly.

“It’s about helping businesses set the strategy, scale effectively and then supporting them through delivery.”

Lee, along with the other panellists, also highlighted the need for the region to better promote itself, pointing to a persistent perception gap.

He said: “We’ve got a massive branding issue – and we’re not helping ourselves.

“People still have an outdated view of the North East, and that’s something we need to change.”

Calling for a clearer and more confident message, he added: “We need to be clearer about what we’re great at and shout about it.

“It’s a fantastic place to live, a fantastic place to grow a business – we’ve got lower costs, a great lifestyle and a strong talent pool.

“What’s missing is a clear, consistent message about why this is a great place to start, grow and scale a business.”

Reinforcing that message, Matt, who had travelled from London for the event, offered an external perspective on how the North East is perceived, again drawing on comparisons with Manchester to emphasise the importance of confidence and self-belief.

He said: “There’s a real confidence in places like Manchester – sometimes even an arrogance about how good their businesses are.

“But that attitude feeds through the whole ecosystem and helps it grow.”

Highlighting the contrast, he added: “That sense of confidence and belief is something the North East can replicate – because it has all the ingredients, it just needs to project them more strongly.”

Drawing on his experience as an investor, Matt also pointed to the importance of visibility and access, stressing that capital is not the issue, but connection.

He said: “Our capital comes from the US and Europe – it’s global – and the challenge is creating the right visibility, connections and networks to bring that into the region and into the businesses we want to back.”

David, meanwhile, built on Lee’s point that the challenge around accessing capital is not a lack of available funding, but rather a lack of awareness and visibility among businesses – an issue the Northern Growth Ladder seeks to address.

He said: “Capital doesn’t need to sit in the region – it’s there, and it’s accessible – as long as there are clear paths to it.

“The biggest obstacle is knowledge – businesses understanding what funding is out there, what it looks like and how they access it.”

Drawing on his experience working with companies to raise investment, David pointed to the progress already made in the North East’s funding landscape.

He added: “The early-stage funding environment in the North East has been strong for a long time, and that’s something we should recognise.

“But the opportunity now is to build on that and create something much bigger.”

Fozia, meanwhile, drew on her experience of scaling a life sciences firm in the North East to highlight the practical challenges facing high-growth businesses in the region.

Reflecting on the realities of building a company in a capital-intensive sector, she pointed to the disparity in funding compared to international competitors.

She said: “We’ve raised around £3 million in funding and generated a similar amount in revenue.

“But our competitors in the US and Europe have raised ten times that and can’t demonstrate half the traction – and that’s really frustrating.”

Emphasising the need to raise the region’s profile, she added: “What we need to do is set a strong baseline and shine a spotlight on what’s available here – because that’s what will attract funding.”

Fozia also stressed that infrastructure remains a significant barrier to growth, particularly when it comes to attracting and retaining talent.

She said: “We’re based at NETPark in Sedgefield, and while it works for mid-career hires, connectivity is a real issue for graduates.

“I’ve lost people because they simply couldn’t get there using public transport.

“If we’re investing in business parks and creating jobs, but people can’t access them, that becomes a real challenge for businesses trying to grow.”

Looking ahead, Fozia said the region has all the foundations to become a leading innovation hub, though must align its strengths more clearly.

She added: “We’ve got fantastic technology, a strong STEM base and a great manufacturing heritage.

“The opportunity is to bring that together and build a clear identity as a place where innovation thrives.”

Addressing another central theme of the white paper, Darush focused on the importance of skills in underpinning the region’s long-term growth, stressing that access to talent will be just as critical as access to capital.

He said: “You can have all the capital in the world, but if you don’t have good people with the right skills, it doesn’t work.”

Highlighting the region’s strengths, he pointed to strong collaboration between employers, colleges and universities, but said more must be done to align education with industry needs.

He added: “There’s some really good practice out there, with businesses working closely with education providers to make sure what’s being taught is relevant.

“But if we’re going to be everything we can be as a region, we need to do a lot more.”

Darush also warned of a growing challenge around experience in the education system, with fewer industry professionals moving into teaching roles.

He said: “Colleges and universities are struggling to attract people with real-world experience to teach the next generation.

“If we can’t do that, then businesses need to step up and play a bigger role in shaping the curriculum.”

Darush went on to call for a more joined-up approach to inspiring young people and supporting smaller businesses.

He added: “Every young person leaving school should understand the opportunities on their doorstep and feel inspired by them.

“And if we can better support SMEs to take on apprentices and develop talent, that’s where we’ll really unlock growth.”

Reacting to the panel discussion, Rob Hamilton, assistant director for economic strategy and innovation at the North East Combined Authority, who was in attendance at the dinner, welcomed the ambition set out in the white paper and called for a coordinated effort to deliver meaningful change.

He said: “It’s brilliant to see this level of ambition and to have so many people championing the region and the work that’s been done.

“We need to build that coalition across the public and private sectors to turn these ideas into reality and break down barriers.

“There are real opportunities ahead in areas like clean energy and innovation, and we need to grasp them.

“But above all, it comes down to confidence – everyone in this room has a role to play in backing the region and driving growth.”

And if the sense of purpose and collective ambition in the room were anything to go by, the North East is ready to raise the bar.

You can download the white paper, along with reports from all six roundtable discussions, here.

NET’s next event, NET250, will take place at the Hilton Newcastle Gateshead on May 14, where the North East’s top 250 firms by turnover will be revealed. To book your tickets, click here.

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