Research England is making a £30 million investment in four regional projects to support place-based research commercialisation ecosystems.

The funding is delivered through Research England’s university commercialisation ecosystems initiative and will bring together universities, industry and other partners to deliver a step change in knowledge exchange activity.

Activities supported through the new initiative include:

• Building new and strengthening existing collaborations.
• Expanding the pipeline of high-quality investible new spin-outs.
• Supporting scale up capability.
• Attracting new UK and international investment.
• Creating high value jobs.
• Embedding longstanding Knowledge Exchange work streams.

The funding forms part of Research England’s wider work to support research commercialisation across the country. It builds on the Connecting Capability Fund (CCF) and the Research England Development (RED) fund, which aim to drive innovation by supporting collaboration and strengthening commercialisation capacity.

The four supported projects are as follows:

• North East: Strategic Commercialisation Ecosystem North East (SCENE) – led by Durham University. SCENE will build on the success of the Northern Accelerator which has helped launch over 50 spin-outs since 2018. By strengthening ties between universities and industry, the project will scale up support for research-led businesses, attract international investment, and help ensure new innovations stay and grow in the region.
• Midlands: Forging ahead/Forging beyond – led by Loughborough University. This wide-reaching collaboration of 15 universities will tackle the fragmentation of skills and talent in the Midlands innovation landscape. The project will help more research make it to market and create lasting economic impact with a new talent pool, expanded accelerator networks, and targeted support for high-growth sectors like health, net zero and advanced manufacturing.
• Liverpool City region: Biologics Regional Innovation and Technology Ecosystem (BRITE) – led by the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. BRITE will plug critical gaps in the local biologics innovation pipeline. It will help develop and manufacture next-generation therapies for infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance. The project will also build essential infrastructure and support local job creation while positioning the region as a national hub for biologics.
• Greater Lincolnshire and East Anglia: Agri-tech Commercialisation Ecosystems (ACE) – led by the University of Lincoln, in partnership with the University of Cambridge and the University of East Anglia. ACE will establish a globally recognised agri-tech innovation cluster. The project will create a new venture fund, develop a national tech transfer office, and support UK-wide agri-tech spinouts aimed at building a more sustainable, food-secure future.

Tony Hickson, Chief Business Officer, Cancer Research UK and panel member for the CCF RED, said:

‘I’m glad that as a panel we were able to advise Research England on these four exciting awards across the country with a diversity of themes and priorities which will be sure to provide a wealth of rich learning.

‘These projects will deliver a step change in commercialisation ecosystems across England. Together, these projects show the power of collaboration, between universities, businesses, and government, to turn great research into practical, life-changing impact.’

Further details are available at the UKRI website.