Wessex life science community launches network

Wessex life science community launches network with big plans to bring investment and prosperity to the region

Companies and public sector organisations from across the South and South West gathered at Salisbury City Hall on Tuesday to launch the Wessex Life Science Cluster (WLSC), an initiative created to champion and support the life science community in the region.

The life science sector includes companies, universities, research institutes and NHS structures involved in research and commercialization. This involves disciplines such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical technology, agriculture, food and environmental sciences that find solutions to improve our quality and standard of life.

Worth £7bn a year and employing thousands, the life science industry is a big part of the South’s economy. The WLSC is complementing recognized centres of excellence in Oxford, Cambridge and London and aims to attract £100m of investment into the region in the next five years with the creation of 2,000 new jobs.

The WLSC is currently funded by Wessex Academic Health Science network and Wiltshire Council, with a number of deliverables already achieved, including the creation of a Wessex Institute for Vaccines and Infectious Disease (WIVID), and an Orthopaedic Research Institute at Bournemouth University (BUORI).

Over 120 delegates attended the event on Tuesday, representing industry, universities, local authorities, Local Enterprise Partnerships, Academic Health Science Networks, the NHS and central government organisations including DSTL and Public Health England.

Attendees listened to presentations from WLSC stakeholders and heard from projects already benefiting from the partnership. Coffee breaks, snacks and a hot lunch sponsored by HGF Limited and Biopharma Process Systems facilitated a busy round of networking and discussion on issues ranging from funding to partnerships.

Karl Simpson, Director of the Wessex Life Science Cluster, said, "The life sciences affect every one of us. The WLSC wants to help businesses speed up the delivery of health innovations to the marketplace, generating economic growth in Wessex and improving quality of life for our citizens."

For more information please contact Lizzie Kennedy, Wessex Life Science Cluster, on 07736 682093, 023 8202 0853 or by email at elizabeth.kennedy@wessexlifescience.net