The College Local Innovation Centre (CLIC) pilot project reached the end of its first year with outstanding success, delivering support to businesses through the adoption of digital technologies and innovation practices that aim to enhance efficiency, productivity, and growth.
Due to its achievements, the initiative has been granted a 1-year extension until 31 March 2026 and funding of £1.2 million across the six CLIC Colleges, further consolidating collaboration among the six partner colleges and their business networks, and its role within the regional innovation ecosystem.
Funded by the Innovate UK Further Education Innovation Fund (FEIF), the CLIC project brought together the six Glasgow City Region Colleges: South Lanarkshire College, City of Glasgow College, West College Scotland, New College Lanarkshire, Glasgow Kelvin College and Glasgow Clyde College. Each institution created a specialised Innovation Centre aligned with regional economic priorities, offering expert guidance in areas such as Sustainable Development, Innovation Leadership, Advanced Manufacturing, Digital Health, Digital Enablement and Digital Creativity.
Over the past 12 months, the CLIC initiative has engaged with over 250 businesses across the Glasgow City Region. Through tailored support, including workshops, solution-focused business events, consultations, facilitation of collaborative approaches and accelerator programmes, companies received hands-on support. As a result, participating businesses saw significant improvements in operational efficiency, cost reduction, exposure and access to new markets and overall competitiveness.
Driving Productivity and Growth:
Businesses reported measurable productivity gains, with many, streamlining operations, cutting costs, and introducing innovative practices, products, and services. The project also played a crucial role in workforce upskilling, equipping employees with the digital skills needed to adapt to technological advancements and approach the future with confidence. By encouraging innovation adoption, CLIC has empowered companies to strengthen their market presence and drive regional economic growth.
Collaboration and Ecosystem Engagement:
The success of the CLIC pilot is a testament to the collaboration between the six partner Colleges, which built a robust network for knowledge exchange and technological advancement. In addition to providing direct business support, the initiative fostered partnerships between academia, industry leaders, well established innovation initiatives and government bodies. This cross-sector collaboration has ensured businesses had access to cutting-edge research, expert insights, practical solutions, underpinned by new business network potential.
Expanding Impact:
With the pilot’s demonstrated success and the announcement of new funding for another 12 months, the CLIC network will now be able to expand its reach to support even more businesses in their innovation journey. The extended initiative will continue to offer customised digital solutions, expert guidance and training and networking opportunities, while exploring further innovative ways to collaborate and exchange knowledge and good practice.
South Lanarkshire College, success to date:
In the first year of the project, South Lanarkshire College received 37 completed Digital Maturity Assessments, attracted 110 businesses to the CLIC Community and delivered six Business Networking Events involving over 150 delegates and over 90 companies including:
One AI Upskilling Workshop
Two Construction Supply Chain Events
Two Digital Marketing Upskilling Workshops
In addition, our CLIC presence on Linkedin has been impressive, generating over 21k impressions and over 4,300 click throughs to content.
Principal and Chief Executive of South Lanarkshire College, Stella McManus said: “South Lanarkshire College is proud to play a key role in supporting innovation in the region The strong partnership across the six Glasgow City Region Colleges has demonstrated that together, colleges can make a real impact through collaboration with strategic partners and business networks keen to join our CLIC community.
The CLIC project has shown that by working together, we can deliver strategic and meaningful support to local business communities, providing business leaders and their workforce with access to the latest technology and expertise. We are looking forward to further supporting regional innovation with our strategic and delivery partners to local businesses - with business input and influence at the heart of what we do.”
Anne Doherty, Head of Alternative Funding of South Lanarkshire College said: “The CLIC project has been a vehicle for transformation at South Lanarkshire College. We have co-created a model for collaborative interventions that best serve our business community, reaching out to new businesses which would not have engaged otherwise. The success of this pilot demonstrates that co-creation, collaboration, and digital innovation are key drivers for business transformation, productivity, and growth.”
Iona Oliver, responsible for CLIC Employer Engagement at South Lanarkshire College concluded: “With another year’s funding, the South Lanarkshire College CLIC team is looking forward to work with more businesses to help them face the future with confidence and thrive in an increasingly digital world. We will continue working with our business partners to deliver more opportunities for networking and knowledge exchange. We wish to thank our delivery partners and business networks in making the pilot such a great success."
For more information on the next phase of the College Local Innovation Centre initiative and how businesses can get involved, please contact clic@slc.ac.uk or visit the CLIC Website - https://www.clic.network/
The South Lanarkshire College CLIC team looks forward to welcoming you!