Resources for Inventors in the West Midlands

The region known as "the West Midlands" consists of

• the metropolitan county of the West Midlands with its metropolitan boroughs of Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton,
• the shire counties of Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire and
• the unitary authorities of Hereforshire, Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin and Stoke-on-Trent.

The region covers an area of just over 13,000 square kilometres and has a population of 5.27 million.

Regional Development

The regional development agency for the West Midlands is Advantage West Midlands. This will be abolished with all the other RDA by March 2012. However, proposals for local enterprise partnerships have been accepted for:

• Birmingham and Solihull with East Staffordshire, Lichfield and Tamworth
• Black Country
• Coventry and Warwickshire
• Stoke and Stafforshire
• The Marches, and
• Worcestershire.

Angels

There are at least two local business angel networks:

• Central England Business Angels ("CEBA") of Henley in Arden; and
• MINERVA of the University of Warwick University science park.

Clinics

Local patent attorneys offer free consultations at Birmingham Central Library in conjunction. NIPC Clinics will also introduce inventors and their investors, lenders and professional advisors to local patent and trade mark attorneys, business advisors, product design consultants, lawyers and others.

Community Development Finance Institutions

There are at least 6 community development finance institutions in the West Midlands:

• Aston Reinvestment Trust of Birmingham;
• Black Country Reinvestment Society of Wolverhampton Science Park;
• Coventry & Warwickshire Reinvestment Trust;
• East Lancs Moneyline of Staffordshire;
• Impetus Rural Reinvstment in the Marches; and
• StreetUK of Birmingham.

Inventors Clubs

There are inventors clubs in Birmingham, Kingswinford and Malvern.

Professional Advice

Members of NIPC West Midlands offer specialist advice and advocacy on intellectual property, information technology, telecommunications, media, entertainment and competition law. We can be reached on 0121 286 1551 or through our national contact form.

Further Information

Further information on inventors resources in the West Midlands will be published on the Inventors Club website.

Resources for Inventors in South West England

South West England consists of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. the city of Bristol and the Isles of Scilly. The region covers an area of 23,828 square kilometres and has a population of just under 5 million.

Regional Development

The regional development agency for the region is the South West Regional Development Agency. This will be abolished with all the other RDAs by March 2012. Proposals for local enterprise partnerships have been accepted for:

• Bath and North East Somerset (The West of England LEP); and
• Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

Clinics

There are clinics at Bristol Central Library and the University of Plymouth. Inventors in South West England can also access online advice and, where appropriate, introduction to local patent and trade mark agents and other intellectual property practitioners through NIPC Clinics.

Community Development Finance Institutions

There are three CDFIs in South West England:

• Bristol Enterprise Development Fund for the Bristol Metropolitan Area
• Frederick's Foundation which has branches in Devon, Dorset, Gloucester, Somerset and Wiltshire; and
• South West Investment Group which covers the whole of the region.

Inventors Clubs

The South West Inventors Club meets on the third Wednesday of the month at Yeovil to discuss members' inventions, intellectual property, funding and other matters.

Libraries

There are PATLib libraries at Bristol and Plymouth.

Professional Advice

We are building up a network of local patent and trade mark attorneys, specialist solicitors and other professionals in South West England. You can access that network by calling us on 0117 325 6300.

Further Information

We have a page on inventors' resources in South West England on the Inventors' Club website which we shall update and expand as and when we can. We have an Inventors Club group on Linkedin and you can of course join the Inventors Club itself. If you want to contact us you can also get in touch through our contact form.