University spinouts to grow industries of the future with new government backing
Source: gov.uk (2025-05-08)

Public sector is being primed to bring innovative ideas out of government labs and onto the market with £30 million backing and new guidance.

- 4 of the UK’s most exciting regional research clusters to grow their ideas into thriving companies and industries of tomorrow with £30 million government backing
- £30 million awarded to world-leading universities working with industry partners across Merseyside, East Anglia, Northeast England and the Midlands to grasp the opportunity to incubate and scale-up the businesses and jobs of the future
- Alongside, first-of-its-kind guidance priming public sector to bring innovative ideas out of government labs and into markets, pulling in the investment that’s vital for growth and job creation to deliver on our Plan for Change
4 innovative UK hubs across Merseyside, East Anglia, the Midlands, and Northeast England will today (Friday 9 May) get fresh backing to grow more ‘spinouts’, innovative new businesses created from within research institutions.

In turn creating new jobs, developing the industries of tomorrow and driving economic growth through the Plan for Change (https://www.gov.uk/missions).

UK innovators have made great strides in getting bright ideas onto the market and in front of investors, but red tape, talent shortages and a lack of access to funding is holding back innovators from turning their ideas into viable growing businesses.

New £30 million funding will support a taskforce of world-leading universities and industry experts across the 4 locations to take advantage of this huge, and all-too-often untapped, opportunity.

It will support efforts to incubate and spin out new companies and create the most fertile and attractive environment for the brightest thinkers and entrepreneurs.

The government is also priming the public sector with first ever guidance to put groundbreaking ideas on the path to investment, becoming the next generation of businesses, creating a pipeline of innovative businesses emerging from the UK’s excellent public sector research landscape.

With step-by-step advice, a new generation of British R&D entrepreneurs in the public sector will be empowered with the tools and support they need to turn ambitious research into marketable products - and in turn unlock benefits from clean energy, to healthcare, and beyond.

Announcing the news on a visit to Aston University, Science Minister, Lord Vallance said:

The UK is home to some of the world’s best universities, and we have deep strengths from life sciences to cutting-edge fields like quantum and engineering biology. But we can and must do more to unlock scientific research’s vast economic potential, and to help our innovators world-leading public sector labs turn brilliant ideas into businesses that attract investment and sustain jobs.

The funding and guidance we are announcing today will reinforce those efforts – supporting our mission to grow the economy as part of the Plan for Change.

The 4 projects receiving funding from Research England

Strategic Commercialisation Ecosystem North East (SCENE)

Based in the North East is receiving over £8 million over 5 years to strengthen and expand the region’s ecosystem, engaging businesses, sector bodies, Catapults and investors more actively in commercialising university research.

Forging ahead/Forging beyond

Based in the Midlands is receiving almost £10 million over 5 years to address the talent, expertise and skills gaps in the Midlands by creating a Talent Pool, inward investment champions and innovation networks. The project will particularly target Heath, Advanced Manufacturing, Net Zero, and Creative & Digital sectors.

Biologics Regional Innovation and Technology Ecosystem (BRITE)

Based in Merseyside will get over £4 million over 3 years to establish a sustainable life sciences ecosystem, in the Liverpool City Region (LCR), focused on developing treatments like vaccines, by addressing gaps in the development of products and materials from living cells or their components, scale-up, and commercialisation.

It will strengthen collaboration between academia, industry, and civic partners to create a connected innovation ecosystem and accelerate the translation of biologics for antimicrobial resistance, infectious diseases, and emerging health challenges.

Agri-Tech Commercialisation Ecosystems (ACE)

Based in Lincolnshire and East Anglia will receive almost £5 million over 3 years to establish a world-leading, self-sustaining Agri-Tech research commercialisation cluster in Greater Lincolnshire and East Anglia, with support from Barclays Eagle Labs, Greater Lincolnshire LEP, New Anglia LEP, and Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority plus commercial partners.

Ana Avaliani, Director of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Enterprise Hub, said:

Industry Academia partnerships create the ideal setting for transforming groundbreaking research into spinouts, addressing real world challenges while fostering economic growth and creating pathways for talented researchers to become entrepreneurs. These spinouts drive innovation and represent a crucial and growing component in our economic future. Our Spotlight on Spinouts 2025: UK academic spinout trends (https://raeng.org.uk/policy-and-resources/research-and-innovation/accelerating-enterprise#spotlight25) report tracked UK university spinouts securing over £2.6 billion in funding, nearly 40% more than the previous year.

This welcome investment and new guidance from government will enhance support for these fledgling businesses as they face complex issues such as skills gaps and funding challenges. They will help foster strategic alliances that aren’t just beneficial but essential for maintaining competitive advantage in today’s innovation landscape.

Notes to editors

The Government Office for Technology Transfer (GOTT) is publishing 2 guides. They provide step-by-step advice on how public sector organisations can create spinouts.

The publications are:
- The Knowledge Asset Commercialisation guide (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/knowledge-asset-commercialisation-guide) contains overarching guidance for commercialisation including options for routes to be taken (licensing, spinouts, joint ventures etc)
- The Knowledge Asset Spinouts Guide (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/knowledge-asset-spinouts-guide) details the practicalities of the spinout route.
The universities involved in the 4 projects

Project: Strategic Commercialisation Ecosystem North East (SCENE)

The universities involved are:
- Durham University (Lead)
- Newcastle University
- Northumbria University
- University of Sunderland
- Teesside University
Project: Forging ahead/ Forging beyond

The universities involved are:
- Loughborough University (Lead)
- Aston University
- University of Birmingham
- Birmingham City University
- Cranfield University
- Coventry University
- Derby University
- De Montfort University
- Keele University
- Leicester University
- University of Lincoln
- University of Nottingham
- Nottingham Trent University
- University of Warwick
- University of Wolverhampton
Project: Biologics Regional Innovation and Technology Ecosystems (BRITE)

The universities involved are:
- Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (Lead)
- University of Liverpool
- Liverpool John Moores University
- Edge Hill University
Project: Agri-tech commercialisation ecosystems (ACE)

The universities involved are:
- University of Lincoln (Lead)
- University of Cambridge
- University of East Anglia
- Cambridge Enterprise
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