How A Sussex Mayor Could Use A Tech And Digital Playbook
This event is facilitated by always possible.
Bought to you in partnership with the Sussex And The City 100.
Short talks. Focused themes. Timely conversations.
As decisions about Sussex’s future move closer to home, these one-hour online sessions offer a space for practical insight, challenge and exchange.
Each event explores a key theme – from digital strategy and manufacturing to land use and culture – shaped in advance by the questions that matter most to the people attending.
Who is it for?
This series is for anyone who wants to better understand how devolution will affect their sector, place or organisation.
Whether you lead a business, work in the public or voluntary sector, study in the region, or simply want to engage in local change - you’re very welcome.
Why take part?
This isn’t a panel discussion or a policy lecture. It’s a fast-paced, insight-led format shaped by audience input.
Guest speakers will respond directly to your questions through short insights, with opportunities to ask more and share your views on what needs to happen next.
What to expect:
- A 60-minute online session
- Scene-setting and update on devolution processes at the start
- Questions sent in by the audience, debated by an room of experts
- Quick-fire Q&A
Potential topic areas:
1. Bridging the skills gap and aligning with employer needs
- How do we close the gap between what employers need and what the current skills system produces?
- What would a digital skills strategy look like that’s genuinely employer-led?
- How can we support young people to apply their training in tech and digital industries in real jobs?
- How do we encourage businesses in the region's growth areas to preserve junior-level job pathways in the face of AI disruption?
2. Harnessing Sussex’s regional tech potential and planning for growth
- How can the giant pool of tech talent in Sussex be better utilised? We need more opportunities locally rather than relying upon London opportunities alone.
- Could Sussex establish innovation zones or appoint a Tech Commissioner to lead digital transformation?
- What can Sussex learn from the tech strategies of West Midlands, Glasgow and Manchester?
- How can we support quantum tech development in Sussex, and what commercial opportunities exist for the whole region?
- What can the tech community be doing now in advance of devolution and to lay the groundwork to help shape a new mayor’s strategy to best benefit tech and digital businesses, their workforce and those wanting to work in it?
3. Strengthening inclusion, networks and community awareness
- What can the various networks and community groups that exist already across the county do to raise awareness of their activities?
- How can we support people in underserved parts of the county and make them feel included in the wider digital community?
Your questions and feedback will help identify where the strongest interest lies, inform future sessions, and support plans for in-person events later in the project.