Birmingham City Council are in the fourth year of the 5-year PURE COSMOS Interreg Europe funded programme. The project set out a framework and a structured methodology which has supported interregional collaboration with other regions both in the UK and also across Europe, the aim of which has been to identify potential new solutions and/or policies and funding opportunities that can be embedded into regional practice and delivered through the implementation of Regional Action Plans.

BCU PhD researchers are improving employability and business prospects for some of the world’s most developing demographics. From assessing the experiences of African and Chinese migrant entrepreneurs in Birmingham to building economic success and growth in areas of sub-Saharan Africa, Birmingham City University’s postgraduate researchers are ensuring starting a business in emerging areas is both successful and sustainable.

Yesterday, 28th March, saw the COSMOS Regional Conference come together with attendance from regional stakeholders and businesses to discuss the importance of data visibility and access to data and web intelligence to support a data driven decision making – a key action of Birmingham’s Regional Action Plan headed by the West Midlands Combined Authority.

We were joined by guest speakers from Birmingham City Council, Birmingham City University, the NHS and local businesses who spoke about the linkages and importance of working with other companies in the region to utilise data held by Local Authority’s, health organisations, decisions makers and agencies to make better products/services which can overcome the challenges and barriers faced by the council and health professionals.

Birmingham will continue to work with GBSLEP Growth Hub, WMCA Office for Data Analytics, and other partners (e.g. Chamber of Commerce, Universities and SME networks, banking institutions and Government) to progress the Regional Action plan due end of the month.