About LELA
Built to move.
LELA brings together students from across the University of Liverpool for leadership development, employer insight, mentoring and next-step opportunity.
It is competitive, cross-disciplinary and built around real contact with industry.
Cohort
Ambitious students from different disciplines learning together.
Access
Speakers, mentors, networking and professional exposure.
Outcome
A credible route into paid internships connected to digital innovation.
Programme
The year.
A clear sequence of cohort-building, themed sessions, mentoring and a closing celebration.
It starts by bringing the cohort together properly, then builds through live themes, external voices and stronger professional confidence across the spring.
The structure matters because each stage gives students a different kind of momentum: connection, context, challenge and then a strong finish.
January
Residential away day
Team building, leadership development and cohort formation.
February
Digitalisation
Industry-led discussion on digital change and innovation.
March
Sustainability
Leadership and decision-making around environmental challenge.
April
Enterprise
Commercialisation, entrepreneurship and turning ideas into value.
May
Integration
Bringing together digital, sustainability and commercial thinking.
June
Celebration
Recognition, reflection and a strong finish to the year.
Liverpool fit
Right on brief.
LELA lines up with Liverpool 2031 through partnership, confidence, digital opportunity and regional impact.
Ambition
Leadership with purpose, initiative and responsibility.
Partnership
Industry speakers and mentors make external partnership visible.
Digital
VEC and DIF link the programme to live digital innovation work.
Impact
Local talent, regional partners and a clearer route into opportunity.
Sir Peter Rigby Fund
The away weekend changed the tone.
Supported by the Sir Peter Rigby Fund, the 2026 Central Tech weekend gave the cohort a stronger start through team-building, applied leadership work and shared momentum.
It turned a programme into a proper cohort.
Student feedback
What students said.
Confident. Human. Useful. Students want more.
"It was a truly rewarding experience to hear from fellow students from diverse backgrounds, and even the speaker. I enjoyed surrounding myself with like-minded individuals and found it incredibly intellectually stimulating."
"A very insightful programme so far. Very motivating and I like that we are made to interact with others and step out of our comfort zone."
"LELA is a great space for likeminded people to not only learn how to improve their leadership skills, but also to connect and meet people who may offer support and advice."
"It did not feel like a typical training session. Most of it felt very human and grounded in real experiences."
The readout
Students value the mix of leadership, contact, confidence and real conversation. The clearest ask is simple: keep building the live element.
Internship spotlight
The internship hook.
Paid summer opportunities through the Digital Innovation Facility make the offer tangible.
The VEC connection gives that route weight: real digital innovation work, real partners and a serious professional setting.
This is more than work experience. It is a bridge into applied innovation.
The route
- Students meet teams through a focused networking lunch.
- They explore where their interests and strengths fit real roles.
- They enter a competitive paid summer internship selection process.
- Selected interns contribute to project work with clear industry relevance.
For students, it is a credible bridge from cohort to contribution.
Speakers and mentors
Who they meet.
Founders, planners, researchers, engineers and graduates already doing the work.
Jana Stella
NeuWave
An entrepreneurial voice showing students how research, technical expertise and commercial courage can turn an idea into a company.
Ian Ford
Pegasus Group
A planning leader whose work helps students connect leadership with place, regeneration and the changing shape of the city.
Professor Alex Singleton
University of Liverpool
A data-driven perspective on innovation, industry engagement and the long-term work required to build valuable external partnerships.
Mani Chandrasehar
BAE Systems
A recent graduate perspective on pace, responsibility and intrapreneurship inside a major organisation.
Industrial sponsor
Get in touch.
If your organisation wants to back LELA through sponsorship, mentoring, speaking or internship support, send a note here.
Programme gallery
In the room.
Partner presence
Who backs it.
