Why the North West is becoming a hub for Science and Innovation

The UK’s science industries are undergoing a major revolution. London has long been regarded as the central hub for the UK’s science industries, but now that’s changing. The government’s approach is evolving and it’s now actively focusing its efforts on supporting regional innovation and economic growth across the whole of the UK, rather than just the capital.

All this has led to renewed focus on the North West, which has already notably established itself as a hub for the life sciences industry. In fact, employment in life sciences in the region has increased by 61% between 2019 and 2024 – which together make it the fastest-growing region outside London for life-sciences infrastructure.

Liverpool in particular has been identified as a major life sciences centre, hosting 167 sector companies (including global pharmaceutical firms) that collectively employ over 6000 people. Manchester also has a strong reputation as a North West science and innovation hub, thanks to its network of universities, hospitals and start-up ecosystem. Demand for lab space to rent in the city even outpaces European contemporaries such as Berlin and Madrid.

The North West’s impressive momentum has accelerated even further recently due to a variety of factors. These include:

• Its established industrial heritage and technical expertise
• A strong talent pipeline for graduates and industry specialists
• A resilient business community and cross-sector collaboration
• Its growing network of science parks that support research, collaboration and innovation
• Increasing government funding and regional innovation strategies
• Increasing R&D activity and sector expansion

The growing role of the North West in UK science and innovation

The government has recently recognised the weakness in concentrating the sector’s skill and talent in London and the South East, so ministers have reoriented the UK’s industrial strategy around a new core objective – the development of individual city regions and development clusters. These are essentially geographically concentrated networks of companies, research institutions, and infrastructure. To support this initiative, the government is also allocating £75m worth of funding to regional innovation launchpads across the UK.

The new system has further cemented the North West’s status as a science and innovation hub. As the historic centre of the Industrial Revolution, the region has long been known for its talent for innovation, which it’s now putting to good use in the modern fields of digital, tech and life sciences.

Its universities play a vital role – the University of Manchester alone generates an estimated £5.95 in productivity benefits for every £1 invested in research, and had a total economic impact of £7.3 billion on the UK economy in 2022–23. It’s produced hundreds of spin-out and start-up companies, with 175 of them headquartered in Greater Manchester.

The University of Manchester, and universities like it, are also increasingly supported by a growing network of science parks and innovation infrastructure, spread across Cheshire, Manchester, Salford, Liverpool and beyond. This includes Sci-Tech Daresbury, which opened in 2005 within a national Science and Technology Facilities Council campus.

Some quick facts at a glance:

• It employs tens of thousands of local people (The pharmaceutical and MedTech sectors alone employ about 25,500)
• It boasts a significant 38% of all UK pharmaceutical output (with a turnover of over £6 million)
• It’s home to manufacturing operations for major global firms, including Baxter and AstraZeneca

In addition to the above, the North West is also being increasingly recognised as a global hub for Industrial Biotechnology innovation, too.

Investment, expansion, and momentum

The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II has contributed to the economic growth in the North West, by investing more than £115 million into over 300 small businesses across the North, alongside £68 million in private co-investment. According to the most recent available figures at the time of writing, the North West continues to be one of Europe’s top regions for foreign investment, attracting 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects in 2024–25.

The region’s economic momentum has remained fairly steady since then, as reflected in the fact that overall business confidence in the North West rose to a net balance of +12.9 in Q4 2025. For context, this sits well above the region’s historical average of +5.8 and markedly ahead of the UK average of -11.1. That indicates that firms are still expecting strong future sales and profit growth across all sectors, including life sciences.

Collaboration between industry and academia

The government has specifically identified cross-sector collaboration as a major factor that drives growth, and it’s something that the North West does particularly well. There’s a lot of close collaboration between talented individuals, academics, and students at the region’s different universities – including the University of Manchester, Liverpool, MMU, Lancaster, Salford, and LJMU. It’s one of the many reasons why the region’s universities are so highly regarded, and how they’re able to consistently spin out start-ups that commercialise new research discoveries, attracting further investment into the region.

The role of science parks in regional growth

While universities generate research and talent, science parks can help to create the conditions that enable new scientific ideas and concepts to be developed, tested and commercialised.

One of the most crucial ways they do this is by providing flexible laboratory and office space to rent, shared facilities, and structured networks that can connect start-ups with academic partners, investors and established firms. That opens up valuable opportunities for collaboration, making it even easier to share vital knowledge, facilities and specialist expertise.

Life science companies can particularly benefit from this – the benefits of science parks for start-up and partnerships (or for smaller companies) are well-documented, as the latter often face significant upfront costs and long product development cycles before they’re able to start generating revenue.

Science parks can help them overcome these challenges by providing specialist equipment, regulatory knowledge and funding pathways – all of which can help shorten their development timelines and strengthen their route to market.

And with multiple start-ups and research teams on the same campus, investors and partners can meet a range of companies and see different projects in one visit. The regular contact can help to quickly form business relationships, and strengthen the regional innovation ecosystem over time.

How does Sci-Tech Daresbury help?

Developed through a partnership between Langtree, the Science and Technology Facilities Council and Halton Borough Council, Sci-Tech Daresbury brings together public and private expertise within one campus with specialised lab and office space. It’s home to more than 160 high-tech companies employing close to 2,000 people, creating a concentrated community of start-ups, scale-ups and established technology businesses.

Its proximity to national research infrastructure at Daresbury Laboratory shapes the type of activity taking place on campus. Companies working on technically demanding projects can enjoy immediate access to specialist facilities and scientific capability, enabling them to continue scaling within the region rather than relocating elsewhere.

One tenant is Azinq, a specialist software company. In the words of its CEO Chris Taylor:

“Our relocation to Sci-Tech Daresbury has been a fantastic move for our business as the campus promotes innovation and growth at its core. We’re still so close to Manchester which allows us to maintain our roots in the city whilst benefiting from everything this science park offers. It’s the best of both worlds.”

The campus also supports regional innovation through cluster initiatives such as its North West HealthTec Cluster, which brings together nearly 50 stakeholder organisations to strengthen R&D collaboration and commercialisation.

Attracting and retaining talent in the North West

Universities in the region have consistently high graduate employment rates, exceeding national averages. In fact, according to Universities UK, graduates account for around 79% of people working in life sciences in the North West, which is higher than many other sectors regionally.

The strength of the academic network and the solid employment pipeline attracts more prospective students and academics (both nationally and from further abroad), creating a steady stream of talent and expertise for businesses in the region. In particular, Manchester’s growth as a science and tech hub has been directly linked to its impressive talent pool from multiple universities.

As well as strong employment prospects, the area benefits from a solid transport network, which helps boost productivity and the local economy by making it easier to access jobs, education and opportunities. It also means shorter commutes, so staff can also enjoy a more affordable way of living, with lower rental rates than city centres.

The continued rise of ‘north shoring’

More and more businesses are choosing to open up satellite offices in the North West – a practice that’s known as north shoring. The principle is much the same as off-shoring. The big difference is that with north-shoring, companies simply outsource part of their operations to another region rather than a different country entirely – which keeps all of those crucial skills and expertise on British soil.

There are plenty of advantages to north-shoring, and a lot of them come down to cost and ease of retention of key staff. Generally, the two biggest overheads for any business are property and people. And while cities like London are highly prestigious places to do business, they’re also notoriously expensive. Employee salaries are still generally 5% to 15% cheaper in the North on average, and recent data on rental costs suggests that Northern office rents can be anywhere from 25% to 45% cheaper than Greater London.

A satellite office also enables businesses to operate a “hub and spoke” model, with London acting as the central “hub” where its senior leaders set strategy, and regional offices acting as “spokes” where its teams can handle specific parts of the company’s work from a lower-cost location. This means that the business can save costs on office space and salaries in those regional teams, improving its overall efficiency and competitiveness.

Looking ahead: the future of science and innovation in the North West

The North West now accounts for around 10% of total UK life sciences employment, according to UK government statistics. Employment at life sciences Research and Development sites has also grown in recent years – the number of R&D sites in the region has risen by 28% between 2016/17 and 2021/22.

Large-scale developments are reinforcing that trajectory too. For example, Manchester is developing an innovation district as part of a wider government-backed Investment Zone designed to attract science and technology businesses. Liverpool is also developing its own 10-year government-supported Investment Zone, focused mainly on life sciences. It’s forecast to attract up to £800 million in investment and create around 8,000 jobs, with particular strength in bio-manufacturing and medical research.

Supporting science and innovation at Sci-Tech Daresbury

As a leading science and innovation campus in the North West, Sci-Tech Daresbury provides a dedicated environment for science and technology businesses that combines specialist facilities, collaborative networks, structured business support and the ability to scale. The entire campus has been carefully designed to give tenants the space and freedom they need to focus on developing new products, scaling their operations and growing their business.

Here’s a quick roundup of what Sci-Tech Daresbury can offer.

Flexible access to advanced labs, offices and dedicated workspaces

Sci-Tech Daresbury’s purpose-built campus is specifically designed to help companies accelerate growth, with direct access to research infrastructure and scientific facilities. These include:

• Flexible laboratories and office space to accommodate growth
• Shared access to specialist equipment, helping teams to manage their capital costs
• On-site meeting rooms, reception services and support infrastructure

There are plenty of reasons why Sci-Tech Daresbury offers the best lab space for rent in the UK. The Innovation Centre provides a 24,000 sq ft hub designed specifically for science and technology businesses, and accommodates around 70 to 80 companies on flexible lease terms. STFC’s ITAC facility provides fitted out laboratories with access to a range of specialist lab equipment under very flexible lease terms. Buildings like Techspace One include high-speed connectivity, ground-floor labs, chemical storage and waste facilities, giving tenants everything they need to carry out complex scientific research and development on-site.

Leading expertise and peer-to-peer networking

More than 160 science and technology companies operate on the campus alongside STFC’s Daresbury Laboratory, giving firms direct access to advanced scientific expertise and opportunities to collaborate with researchers. The campus’s cluster-based model brings together businesses working in life sciences, materials, digital technologies and advanced engineering, so that tenants can also enjoy the benefits of cross-sector collaboration.

Business support and long-term growth

Sci-Tech Daresbury provides tailored business support delivered by the on-site team, including (but not limited to) guidance on intellectual property, funding, commercial strategy, product development and scaling. The Vanguard House and the Violet developments form part of a wider campus strategy to create a “home for life” environment, allowing businesses to start, grow and remain within the region as their space and technical requirements evolve.

Future development

The campus forms part of the Liverpool City Region Life Sciences Innovation Zone. Over the next 10 years, Sci-Tech Daresbury is expected to create or support around 300 jobs (contributing to Liverpool’s predicted total of 8000) while significantly expanding regional laboratory capacity for high-growth science companies.

Within this Investment Zone, Sci-Tech Daresbury is on track to begin development on its own landmark new facility, named Violet Phase Two. This new mixed-use facility will add around 80,000 sq ft of new innovation space to the campus, including a 23,000 sq ft Grade A office building and a 60,000 sq ft laboratory facility designed for companies that need larger, scalable research environments. Its V5 building will provide CL2-enabled laboratory space with large floorplates, specialist ventilation, piped gases and high ceilings, so that tenant companies can install and operate advanced research equipment and instrumentation.

Companies locating here will also be eligible for a range of occupier benefits including business rates relief, national insurance contribution holidays and enhanced capital allowances.

Why the North West continues to attract ambitious businesses

It comes down to three words: community, opportunity, and momentum. Its strong business community is noted for its supportive and collaborative spirit, and its prestigious universities provide a steady stream of highly-educated talent – bolstered by even more people who are regularly drawn to the city from further afield, attracted by its high living standards. The region also benefits from public and private investment, and ambitious leadership from city councils determined to continue supporting their growing scientific communities.

Sci-Tech Daresbury plays an instrumental role within that ecosystem by providing life sciences companies with exceptional facilities, equipment, and expertise. More than 70% of companies on the campus collaborate with at least one other organisation on-site, helping to generate millions of pounds of value in new sales or cost savings. Companies based at Sci-Tech Daresbury report average sales growth of about 25% per year – including everyone from start-ups to scale up companies.

If you’re looking for a new home for your own life sciences business, there are plenty of workspace options to explore here at Sci-Tech Daresbury. Each one has been carefully designed to provide the perfect environment for all your commercial, operational and scientific activity, as your business continues to grow.