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How LORIC is changing the way Lincolnshire businesses use data

Having only launched in September 2018, the Lincolnshire Open Research and Innovation Centre (LORIC) has already transformed the way several organisations across the county do business. From designing insight-led business strategies to using data and research to empower companies, in less than a year LORIC has guided multiple socially-conscious organisations across Lincolnshire to investment and innovation.

An example is Every-One, a charity that supports unpaid carers and the people they’re responsible for. The social enterprise runs a range of projects to aid carers in maintaining their own wellbeing, along with the wellbeing of those in their care.

Every-One contacted LORIC for help with their Employment for Carers scheme, a project that encourages small-to-medium businesses to hire and support unpaid carers. Utilising open data, LORIC open research fellow Katya Bozukova created a calculator that shows companies why it’s important to support unpaid carers in the workforce. By portraying the negative monetary impact undermining carers can have on an organisation, the calculator shows why hiring carers makes good business sense. The calculator is one-of-a-kind in the industry, but Every-One hopes their success with the tool will inspire similar organisations to adopt their own version.

Another business who has received support through LORIC is the Acts Trust, a charity whose goal is to end poverty in Lincoln. Founded by the city’s Alive Church in 2006, their initiatives equip people with essential skills and know-how to resolve the issues that lead to poverty - such as offering mental health support or debt advice – while helping the community to flourish.

LORIC specialist advisor Kay Purle educated the charity on which datasets would be most beneficial to their projects, as well as how figures can showcase the impact their work has on the community. LORIC helped the Acts Trust to show that their efforts improve the lives of others, helping the charity to attract investors and further their cause.

LORIC provides a multitude of free support services to help organisations reap the benefits of open data. This includes connecting companies with researchers and data specialists to divulge insights, identify gaps in the market and help businesses to go digital. As well as sitting down with each business to develop a tailored plan, they also share their knowledge free of charge through events and seminars. In just nine months, LORIC has helped a range of Lincolnshire-based organisations to use data for the greater good.

To find out more about LORIC’s services, or how they can use data to boost your business, visit their website https://www.lincolnbishop.ac.uk/loric/loric-home/ or email loric@bishopg.co.uk.