Lancashire Innovation Festival returns this autumn for a second year, building on the success of 2020. The week-long event celebrates innovative thinking across the county and how to drive future growth.

The programme aims to showcase how the regions SMEs can engage with innovation support services across the county. Alongside this the event also hopes to inform businesses and entrepreneurs from outside the region how investing in Lancashire will support them.

This year’s celebration will run from the 4th till the 8th of October and will be streamed virtually for audiences to engage with a range of workshops, panel discussions, online networking, and education sessions. Some of the county’s most prominent business leaders and entrepreneurs will be joined by academics to showcase key innovation strands including digital, low carbon, manufacturing, health, and social innovation.

In an effort to display the full range of support services available throughout Lancashire, the event will be streamed from a number of different locations. These locations include Fraser House at Lancaster, Blackburn Youth Zone, the EIC at UCLan and Energy HQ in Blackpool.

As well as a range of Innovation Festival events, the organisers are looking for the as many of the county’s innovators as possible to step forward and deliver their own innovation themed sessions during the week.

Maya Ellis, lead of innovation and digital at Lancashire County Council, said: “We are looking forward to building on the success of last year’s event and inspiring even more businesses to take part and embrace innovation and the opportunities it brings.

“The LEP’s Innovation Board is committed to showcasing all the county’s wonderful innovation activity in one week and we’re keen to hear from anyone who would like to contribute.” Further details of the festival can be found on the official LinkedIn, Twitter and website where you can register now to receive updates as more information is announced.