On Wednesday 8th July, TEP Birmingham was proud to host the launch of the NatWest Accelerator, marking an exciting chapter in the site’s long history of innovation. The event took place 160 years after the successful connection of the transatlantic telegraph cable, made here at Webster and Horsfall, offering a fitting reminder that innovation has long been a golden thread throughout the site’s history.
Our partnership with the NatWest Accelerator builds on this legacy by connecting clean tech and growth businesses with the support they need to grow. By combining NatWest’s funding and mentoring expertise, with the research strengths of West Midlands universities, and the support of the West Midlands Combined Authority, the programme creates a powerful platform to help businesses test ideas, develop solutions and contribute to a cleaner, lower-carbon future.
The TEP Birmingham launch marks an important step in the continued growth of NatWest’s Accelerator network, becoming its 15th hub across the UK. The programme already supports more than 25,000 entrepreneurs and business owners, with plans to reach 50,000 members by the end of 2026. The new hub will also strengthen NatWest’s wider regional presence across Tyseley, Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Warwick, connecting the Accelerator network with NatWest’s specialist venture banking and sustainability finance teams. By adding TEP Birmingham to this growing regional network, NatWest is creating stronger links between founders, investors, universities and industry partners, opening up wider access to coaching, expertise and practical business support.
A key theme from the launch was the importance of community and ecosystem in making change happen. The Accelerator is about creating the right conditions for ambitious businesses to grow. By locating it at TEP Birmingham, the Accelerator is placed within an established clean growth ecosystem, where innovation is already being developed, tested and applied. This gives businesses access to more than advice alone, connecting them with a working industrial site, specialist knowledge, potential partners and the infrastructure needed to turn ideas into commercial growth.
“Innovation rarely happens in isolation. It happens when entrepreneurs, businesses, researchers and investors come together to share ideas, expertise and opportunities. By connecting TEP Birmingham’s growing clean energy and advanced manufacturing cluster to NatWest’s wider UK Accelerator community, we can help businesses access the networks they need to scale with confidence”
Robert Begbie, CEO, NatWest Commercial & Institutional
The launch also highlighted the strength and potential of Birmingham and the wider West Midlands. The region has a long industrial heritage, a strong manufacturing base and growing strengths in clean energy and sustainable technologies. Yet too often, regional innovation does not receive the same visibility or investment as businesses based in London and the South East. By launching the Accelerator at TEP Birmingham, this partnership is helping create more routes for West Midlands businesses to access support, attract investment and scale their ideas closer to home.
Together, the launch marks an important step in strengthening the partnerships, infrastructure and ambition needed to turn West Midlands innovation into real-world growth.
“For us, this next chapter with the Accelerator is incredibly exciting. Bringing together innovation, capital and expertise is exactly what this country needs to drive regional and national growth. We’re incredibly proud of our heritage, but even more excited about the future”
Robert Horsfall, Director of Finance & Strategic Projects, TEP Birmingham
