Enterprise zones were set up by Government to encourage new investment and new jobs and new research suggests that South and Vale councils’ Science Vale enterprise zones have had an outstanding year for investment.

The research by high-growth insights firm Beauhurst was commissioned by Milton Park. It reveals that public and private investment in the park and its enterprise zone sites reached a combined £590 million between January and October 2021. Much of this investment was into life science companies.

Milton Park occupiers Adaptimmune, Immunocore, Exscientia, Oxford Immunotec and most recently Evotec have all attracted huge levels of investment through floating on the NASDAQ stock exchange. Several of these companies are located on enterprise zone sites.

Philip Campbell, Commercial Director at MEPC Milton Park, said: “After seeing record levels of investment in life sciences across the world this year, we wanted to put a spotlight on how much of that funding had been raised by companies based at Milton Park. The findings reveal the fantastic contribution that Milton Park companies are making to the booming Oxfordshire cluster. “

Life science companies on the Science Vale enterprise zone site at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus are also attracting investment.  Vaccitech, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, responsible for the technology behind the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, has taken 31,000 square feet within the Zeus development on the Harwell Campus enterprise zone site.

Stuart Grant, Chief Executive of Harwell Campus said: “I’m delighted that Vaccitech has chosen the Campus as its base to grow the business and to develop future vaccine manufacturing capability.”

Vaccitech’s Chief Operating Officer, Chris Ellis, said, “Vaccitech has a broad pipeline of programmes in clinical trials and manufacturing for a biotechnology company of its size. This reflects the ambition, passion and drive that is felt right across the company and its investors as we strive to bring new immunotherapeutics and vaccines to the world.”

An added bonus of investment and business growth on South and Vale’s enterprise zone sites is that business rates paid by businesses within the zones will be retained and reinvested in Science Vale, until 2041.