Developed in partnership with industry, its Kent and Medway Engineering, Design, Growth and Enterprise (EDGE) Hub provides a strong catalyst for change, together with the stimulation of new skills and innovation for Industry 4.0 and 5.0 in the South East.

What is EDGE Hub?

EDGE Hub addresses the current challenges faced by companies in Kent and Medway who require innovative solutions that enables them to thrive. We have developed a new and exciting model to deliver STEM education, enterprise, and research to help expand the region's inward investment potential.

  • EDGE Hub will be worth an estimated £7.6m to £11.4m per year to the Kent and Medway economy. Injecting 1250 highly-skilled engineering and technology graduates into the local economy by 2024.
  • The Hub has created a sustainable and diverse regional talent pool with 30 to 40% of graduates from disadvantaged backgrounds and 30 to 35% women graduates by 2024.
  • Canterbury Christ Church University is a leading and active partner in Kent and Medway’s schools and colleges, with strong outreach and engagement initiatives, inspiring thousands of children into higher education. It also holds the STEM Learning schools network contract, STEM Hub, for the South East. Member of the national WISE campaign, the international CDIO community and Primary Engineer’s education partner for the South East.
  • It is supported by multimillion-pound funding from the South East Local Enterprise Partnership, former Higher Education Funding Council for England, and the Garfield Weston Foundation.

Skills for industry and CPD

The diverse expertise of our EDGE Hub team is being harnessed to promote skills development in industry, particularly in the context of Industry 4.0 and the wider digital transformation agenda.

Degree courses span biomedical, chemical, mechanical, product design, and software engineering, alongside technology degrees in business information systems, computer forensics and security, computer science, and computing.

We have designed a comprehensive programme of Industry 4.0-focused continuing professional development (CPD) sessions. Bespoke CPD, delivered on location in businesses and in our new EDGE Hub facilities is entirely responsive to business and industry needs.

Find out more about how we've transformed our Canterbury Campus.

Engineering Degree Apprenticeships

Three scientists discussing experiment results at a work bench

Our Engineering Higher Degree Apprenticeships are designed to address regional engineering skills shortages and sector diversity and have been identified and developed with industry to support local businesses to ‘grow their own’ graduate engineering workforce.

Apprentices will be supported not only to gain the relevant manual dexterity and technical knowledge, but also to develop occupational behaviours, including a problem-solving orientation, a safety mindset, good communication skills, and adaptability.

  • Manufacturing Engineer Degree Apprenticeship - BEng (Hons) Manufacturing Engineering
  • Science Industry Process/Plant Engineer Degree Apprenticeship - BEng (Hons) Process Engineering.

Find out more about our apprenticeships here. 

Collaborate with engineering students

We are educating future generations of engineers with the natural talent and creative potential to succeed. We are also creating a diverse workforce of highly-skilled graduates in the region who will bring the relevant skills to embrace digital transformation in industry. Employers can access this emerging student talent through live industry projects and student placements.

Incubator projects, undertaken by students and supported by academic and business expertise, can provide important and innovative solutions, particularly for businesses that might not have readily available time or in-house resources.

Work-based placements, either year-long or shorter, provide learning opportunities for students while offering businesses additional resource, skills, and fresh insight.

Find out more about how you can access our students and graduates.

Spaces for innovation

Verena Holmes Building

The Verena Holmes Building is part of a growing hub and spoke model with distributed centres of excellence across Kent and Medway, easily accessible by business. This includes existing satellite sites at Discovery Park, Sandwich, and links to the Institute of Medical Sciences at the University’s Medway Campus, Chatham.

The EDGE Hub facility, designed with and for regional employers and industry,  contains the technologies and spaces for ground-breaking innovation and pioneering research, supporting businesses, emerging entrepreneurs, and innovators in taking ideas from concept to market.

It is be a highly-interactive and creative space where engineers can engage, collaborate, and share knowledge with doctors, nurses, designers, and life sciences students.

Hub home

Enterprise & Engagement Team
Any questions? Please contact us
This new facility will be worth up to an estimated £11m a year to the Kent and Medway economy and will add an additional 1,250 graduates with higher level engineering and technology skills into the labour market by 2024.
Professor Rama Thirunamachandran
Vice-Chancellor of Canterbury Christ Church University

Our Partners

Discovery Park
Discovery Park
South East Local Enterprise Partnership Logo
South East Local Enterprise Partnership Logo
WISE
WISE
Year of Engineering
Year of Engineering
HM Government
HM Government
Primary Engineer
Primary Engineer
CDIO
CDIO
WES
WES