The UK Government is backing the creation of ‘space hubs’ – helping to fund a collaborative strategy across different regions to maximise the opportunities which the ever growing space sector presents to the UK.

Harwell in Oxfordshire has already established itself as a space hub – and it’s been a huge economic catalyst for both the region and the sector in the UK – and funding will now be passed to regions including the North West, West Midlands and West Yorkshire.

The government is committed to making space a sector that thrives beyond the ‘Golden Triangle’ of London, Cambridge and Oxford, and contributes jobs and growth to regions across the whole of the UK. This approach is reinforced by support for seven potential spaceport locations in areas across Cornwall, Wales, and Scotland.

Register for our webinar focused on the space sector and its impact on the built environment here: https://www.built-environment-networking.com/event/space-the-final-frontier-for-the-property-construction-sector/

Science Minister Amanda Solloway said: “The UK’s space sector has shown incredible resilience to the coronavirus pandemic and will continue to play a key role in our recovery – from creating high-quality jobs to finding unique ways to support our NHS. This funding will arm local leaders up and down the UK with the tools they need to put their local areas at the front of the commercial space race, while refuelling the tank of the UK economy and helping Britain realise its ambitions as a global space superpower. [emaillocker id=”71749”]

“The six-month projects will see local government, experts and business leaders come together to find out how their area can take advantage of the opportunities of the commercial space age. Each location will use the money to assess their current space capabilities and develop action plans for how they can accelerate the growth of their local space hub.”

Dr Colin Baldwin – Head of Local Growth Strategy at the UK Space Agency, said: “Space has gone from a nice-to-have sector to a heavyweight industry in the UK over the past decade – trebling in size and now employing over 42,000 people. We know that space will help put fuel back in the tank of the economy as it recovers from the pandemic and are determined this growth will be felt in all corners of the country.

“Space hubs will be led by a consortium of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), combined authorities, academic institutions, research groups and businesses, to look at current strengths and set a strategy for how to grow the space sector in their area. The UK Space Agency will also support Space Leadership Forums in each region, bringing together local government, business leaders and academia into a representative body that can drive forward this work and champion the sector.”

Receiving funding are:

  • Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), which will lead a project focused on North-West England
  • West of England Combined Authority (WECA), which covers Bristol, Bath and North-East Somerset and South Gloucestershire
  • City-REDI of the University of Birmingham
  • University of Leeds and Leeds City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) working across West Yorkshire
  • Enterprise M3 Local Enterprise Partnership, which will cover Surrey and Hampshire
  • Welsh Government, which will carry out activities across the whole of Wales
  • AstroAgency on behalf of the Scottish Space Leadership Council, which will look across all of Scotland

In addition to funding for seven areas in this round, money went to Northern Ireland earlier this year, where a project is being led by Invest Northern Ireland to carry out analysis of its local space sector, to work out where investment would be best directed, continuing the important, collaborative partnership between the UK Space Agency and the Devolved Administrations.

Register for our webinar focused on the space sector and its impact on the built environment here: https://www.built-environment-networking.com/event/space-the-final-frontier-for-the-property-construction-sector/

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