Stakeholder workshop & launch of South East England Hub 4 Circularity, 3^rd June 2025

The South East England Hub for Circularity (SEEH4C) is one of seven Hubs for Circularity being created across Europe and South Africa over the next four years as part of the EU Horizon funded United Circles project. The project aims to develop, test, and implement innovative circular solutions that enable resource efficiency and collaboration between sectors. SEEH4C is led by Tech-Takeback, in partnership with Kent County Council and Claire Potter Design.

On Tuesday 3rd June 2025, SEEH4C proudly hosted its first stakeholder engagement event at Plus X Innovation in Brighton — marking a major milestone for the Hub. The event brought together 44 stakeholders from across the region, representing a rich mix of sectors including public and private organisations, industry experts, local government, utilities, policy makers, educators, academics, innovators, and businesses of all sizes. Together, they began an important conversation about the future of circularity in the South East and explored opportunities to shape the development of SEEH4C.

The afternoon offered a dynamic mix of learning, discussion, and collaboration. Attendees and organisers had the opportunity to:

• Discover more about the EU Horizon United Circles project and the innovative work taking place across all partner regions
• Engage in thought-provoking discussions about their own priorities around industrial symbiosis and the circular economy
• Share best practices and lessons learned from their sectors
• Connect and collaborate, building relationships, identifying common challenges around secondary raw materials and waste reduction, and exploring potential solutions together
• Get involved, learning more about SEEH4C’s mission and exploring how they could help shape its next steps

It was inspiring to see such a diverse group of attendees collaborating and sharing ideas during the breakout workshop sessions — each expertly facilitated by a member of the SEEH4C team. The day concluded with a lively plenary session, where participants reflected on their discussions and explored next steps together. The energy, insights, and momentum of the day have been captured in a short highlights video, available to watch on the SEEH4C channel – https://youtu.be/JwTmpUqegt8?si=uPLfCwUoJ6wEqjfb

Event outcomes

As part of the community engagement process, workshop participants took part in two interactive exercises designed to capture their insights and ideas:

• A SWOT analysis exploring what SEEH4C could look like, identifying its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats
• A futures-thinking exercise considering the potential impact, legacy, and challenges of SEEH4C through Social, Economic, Political, and Technological lenses

The workshop exercises sparked lively discussions and generated nearly 200 valuable insights, providing a clear picture of SEEH4C’s potential and the challenges ahead. Despite representing 16 different sectors and a wide range of backgrounds, attendees discovered common ground, identifying shared opportunities and challenges around scaling solutions, securing funding, and improving communication both within their industries and with external stakeholders.

These conversations are critical for advancing circularity and enabling true industrial symbiosis, laying the collaborative foundations needed for lasting impact. Figure 1 highlights the most frequently discussed themes, with funding, collaboration, and innovation emerging as key priorities. Discussions also explored potential funding mechanisms to ensure the long-term sustainability of SEEH4C, reinforcing the Hub’s vision for a resilient, cross-sector network driving meaningful economic, environmental, and social change.

Even at this early stage, many of the discussions are already bearing fruit, sparking new collaborations and synergies both among attendees and with other key stakeholders beyond the room.

Event testimonial

“The additional credibility and opportunity afforded by our involvement in setting up this cluster has already opened up exciting avenues with several regional organisations to address some of the bigger circularity challenges that we’re facing. As a large county council and a waste managing authority, dealing with material collected from over 1.6 million residents plus the many bi-products of a bustling local economy presents all manner of opportunities for the region…the key now is how best to realise these and create the right conditions (at the right level) to capitalise on them and create a thriving circular economy covering multiple material streams. We’re very much looking forward to bringing as many local players as possible with us on this journey alongside our UK partners”  Rob Robinson, Circular Economy Programme Manager, Kent County Council

Next Steps

SEEH4C is now entering an exciting new phase. We are establishing an Advisory Board, supported by sector specialist working groups, with an initial focus on Construction & Demolition Waste. In the coming months, additional working groups will be formed to tackle key sectors such as Electricals, Agri-Food, and Textiles — areas where circular approaches can deliver real, measurable impact.

Our next stakeholder event, taking place in November, will provide an opportunity for participants to give feedback on our proposed governance framework, including the Advisory Board, sector working groups, and other key elements. Attendees will also be invited to register their interest in contributing directly, whether through Advisory Board membership or participation in sector working groups.

The experience, expertise, and perspective of these stakeholders will be invaluable as we lay the foundations for a collaborative, action-oriented network driving circularity across the South East.

Written by Tech-Takeback