Editorial & Advertiser disclosure

Global Banking & Finance Review® is an online platform offering news, analysis, and opinion on the latest trends, developments, and innovations in the banking and finance industry worldwide. The platform covers a diverse range of topics, including banking, insurance, investment, wealth management, fintech, and regulatory issues. The website publishes news, press releases, opinion and advertorials on various financial organizations, products and services which are commissioned from various Companies, Organizations, PR agencies, Bloggers etc. These commissioned articles are commercial in nature. This is not to be considered as financial advice and should be considered only for information purposes. It does not reflect the views or opinion of our website and is not to be considered an endorsement or a recommendation. We cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information provided with respect to your individual or personal circumstances. Please seek Professional advice from a qualified professional before making any financial decisions. We link to various third-party websites, affiliate sales networks, and to our advertising partners websites. When you view or click on certain links available on our articles, our partners may compensate us for displaying the content to you or make a purchase or fill a form. This will not incur any additional charges to you. To make things simpler for you to identity or distinguish advertised or sponsored articles or links, you may consider all articles or links hosted on our site as a commercial article placement. We will not be responsible for any loss you may suffer as a result of any omission or inaccuracy on the website.

Home > Top Stories > FREE WORKSHOPS HELP ADD EXTRA SPARKLE TO NEWCASTLE BUSINESS

FREE WORKSHOPS HELP ADD EXTRA SPARKLE TO NEWCASTLE BUSINESS

Published by Gbaf News

Posted on August 12, 2014

3 min read

Last updated: January 22, 2026

We Are Sparkle team at Go Digital Newcastle workshop enhancing digital skills - Global Banking & Finance Review — Image of the We Are Sparkle team participating in a Go Digital Newcastle workshop, focusing on enhancing digital marketing and website skills for businesses in Newcastle.

A NEWCASTLE company is adding extra sparkle to its creative communications with the help of Go Digital Newcastle’s free programme of support for businesses in the city.

Nicola Little and Jennifer Robson founded PR firm We Are Sparkle in 2013 and are based at Riverside Studios in the city.

Digital channels are a major part of their business, and when they heard about the free masterclasses and workshops available from Go Digital Newcastle, they jumped at the chance.

The free sessions – worth up to £1,000 if they needed to be paid for – include one-to-one help from an expert advisor.

Training sessions range from marketing to social media and website skills, as well as business development events.

Nicola said: “We heard on Twitter about the free support sessions available to businesses, and we started by joining a session on how to get the most out of your website.

“We’ve been running websites for six years, but we believe you should always keep on training and updating.

“We picked up a number of useful tips. The session has informed what we plan to do when we relaunch our website, because it’s helped us look at it from a different point of view and think about who the website is actually for – our customers.

“We’re planning to take a session on social media next.”

Go Digital Newcastle is an initiative being run by Newcastle City Council with the help of government funding.

The initiative is providing a welcome boost to eligible small and medium-sized businesses, charities and social enterprises in Newcastle, North Tyneside and Gateshead.

They can apply to Go Digital Newcastle for a connection voucher worth up to £3,000 to get connected to superfast broadband. The businesses choose their own supplier, and pay the on-going charges and any VAT.

The Go Digital Newcastle business support programme used by We Are Sparkle and funded by ERDF, aims to help businesses take full advantage of the Internet – and eligible companies can also apply for up to £2,000 in funding for related IT equipment.

Nicola was a speaker at the recent Go Digital Newcastle Superfast Summit for businesses, and We Are Sparkle is now applying for one of the free connection vouchers.

She said: “What Go Digital Newcastle is doing is great, and everybody should try to take advantage and see how it can help their business.”

Cllr Michael Johnson, Newcastle City Council Deputy Cabinet Member for Skills, Business and Enterprise, said funding and help was now available to thousands of eligible SMEs, charities and social enterprises in the area.

He said: “It’s great to see local businesses like We Are Sparkle making the most of the Go Digital Newcastle connection voucher offer.

“They see the huge benefits that superfast broadband can bring to organisations – it means they can connect with their customers more easily, promote their products and services, and save costs by working more efficiently.

“Demand is really growing for these vouchers and for the free business support, and because funds are limited, we’d encourage local businesses and charities to get their applications in as soon as they can.”