Future Cities Forum 'Science Cities Oxford' report part one
Future Cities Forum's first 'Science Cities Oxford 2025' panel discussion at Said Business School, University of Oxford, involved contributions from Oxford City Council, OxLEP, West Midlands Combined Authority, ARC Group / Harwell Campus, the UK Atomic Energy Authority and architects Scott Brownrigg.
Among the topics discussed were the opportunities that devolution will bring with the re-organisation of local government, how Oxfordshire can position itself in the top three of global science eco-systems by 2040 and whether the UK stating numbers on housing would deliver sustainable communities?
Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership (OxLEP) has brought together its key achievements in its latest, interactive report ‘Driving Investment and Sustainable Growth for Oxfordshire (DISGO)’.
During the 12 months highlighted in the report, OxLEP announced that overall, it supported almost 1,800 businesses, provided over 2,800 hours of support and retained millions of pounds-worth of apprenticeship levy for the county –investment that would have otherwise been lost to Oxfordshire.
Meanwhile Oxford City Council is set to announce a new roadmap for the development of its next Local Plan – the planning policies used to determine all planning applications in Oxford. It stated:
'The adopted Local Plan 2036 remains in date and will continue to be used in determining planning applications. Producing the new Local Plan 2042 will not mean starting from scratch. Much of the work previously carried out for the LP2040 remains relevant and will inform policies in the 2042 plan.
'The government issued a new national planning policy framework (NPPF) on 12 December 2024 and the 2042 Plan will need to align with this. Among other things, it reintroduced mandatory housing targets dropped in 2023 and the Council will prepare its new plan in line with the higher assessment of housing needs proposed under the new NPPF. A new class of ‘grey belt’ land means the Council will need to formally review Green Belt sites within Oxford. An initial assessment suggests there will be very little if any grey belt land in the city itself.'
The Council will also shortly begin a new call for potential development sites as part of its ongoing work to assess the capacity to deliver new homes within Oxford’s boundaries.
Oxford City Council has also written to the Government about its proposal for devolution and local government reorganisation in Oxfordshire.
The letter has been sent because Oxford City Council does not support Oxfordshire County Council’s request to cancel county council elections and to move forward with local government reorganisation ahead of agreeing the geography within which it would be operating as a Mayoral Combined Authority.
Above: Cornmarket Oxford city centre in 2024 looking east towards Christchurch with the Clarendon Centre on right - undergoing conversion from retail to create more space for science and laboratory use
Councillor Susan Brown, Leader of Oxford City Council, wrote to Jim McMahon MP, Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution, on the 10 January saying:
'It is essential that we land our MSA geography first as this will inform the optimum options for unitarisation. While we have had discussions on the MSA, as yet, there have not been any discussions within Oxfordshire or with other partner councils regarding options for Local Government Reorganisation. We are keen to participate in such discussions in the interests of the residents that we represent in Oxford.'
At Future Cities Forum, Cllr Susan Brown commented on the opportunities for Oxford through the UK government's devolution plans:
'There are some massive opportunities for our region. There is some local geography allied to the Thames Valley which has the potential to be exceptional in providing opportunities for us and which will turn out to be significant to the economy. But there are challenges in Oxfordshire. With the local government reorganisation we do have to get this right. It is an historical opportunity as it was nearly fifty years ago that this situation occurred previously. We have to get it right for all businesses and residents. I Chair the 'Fast Growth Cities' and we have an important role for the national economy in this region. Oxford has to have its own government and expanded boundaries to ensure the economy continues to grow.
Susan was asked whether devolution would enable Oxfordshire to find the 'one voice' that it has been striving for?
'Yes, it has that opportunity because there will be less confusion about which authority is doing what. We haven't always seen eye to eye with Oxfordshire County Council, but it is still going to be working with us and we will also be working to a strategic authority above us.
In terms of a mix of housing, Susan was questioned over whether the new council housing coming over the next decade would serve all of Oxford's needs?
'This is all about our merging local plan and we have talked to employers about creating opportunities to build housing on their own land. Housing is so difficult here for many people with our constrained boundaries. To support our local economy we need wider boundaries and more housing of all sorts. We must help people in addition to council housing to get on the housing purchasing ladder.'
Chief Executive of OxLEP, Nigel Tipple, was brought into the discussion and asked how he intended to position Oxford as one of the top three global innovation ecosystems by 2040?
'We are already on some levels in the top three, and we need to deal with challenges but I don't think we have to spend a lot of time worrying about our league position. Our university spin outs have already got investment from the Government but our places matter and the connections in between. The cultural heritage of landscape is also very important.
'Our skills training is not as good as it should be and we need to double down on improving education for communities that feel disenfranchised. It is a case of starting earlier working right from primary schools but also give all ages the confidence to learn. AI is a case in point. I cannot determine what AI will deliver in terms of jobs but it is important to encourage interest in acquiring those skills. It is about culture as well as tech.
It was put to Nigel that often there are concerns for science to grow but there is not enough space to expand and he answered:
'It shouldn't be a worry because we have strong collaborations with advanced manufacturing plants like the one in Rotherham in the north of England. What we are seeing here is levelling up in real time. We have the research and tech here in Oxfordshire, and we can share that with other areas, who can supply the manufacturing.'
Above: production of electric cars in 2023 at Mini Plant Oxford, Cowley (courtesy of BMW Group). Battery demand is expanding globally with the conversion to 'greener' power. Oxfordshire's science R&D companies are looking to partner with manufacturing sites across the wider UK
The West Midlands Combined Authority has announced that plans for a battery manufacturing and technology hub that will create thousands of new jobs in the West Midlands have taken a significant step forward this January.
Mayor Richard Parker has announced a £23 million funding package to power up the Coventry and Warwick Gigapark with the installation of a dedicated energy supply capable of supporting large-scale battery production. The Gigapark site - part of the region’s flagship Investment Zone - includes Greenpower Park, the UK’s Centre for Electrification and Clean Energy.
This major investment is intended by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) to make this key Investment Zone site development-ready and it is hoping that it will put the region into pole position to secure the major international investment to attract battery manufacturers along with other associated electric vehicle and energy storage supply chain businesses. Fully developed, the Gigapark could create up to 6,000 jobs in battery manufacturing and in the EV supply chain.
On housing, the Mayor joined construction workers recently at the Port Loop ‘island community’ in Edgbaston, Birmingham to confirm a £1.7m funding deal for 124 social and affordable homes on five acres of derelict industrial land.
WMCA states that the investment comes after 6,520 West Midland households, including more than 13,000 children, started the New Year living in temporary accommodation as the region continues to suffer from a lack of affordable homes. More than 60,000 people across the West Midlands are currently on housing waiting lists.
Cllr Ian Courts, who was instrumental in setting up the West Midlands Combined Authority, said that he was also optimistic about the forthcoming opportunities for economic success in the region:
Above: CGI of Arden Cross development around the HS2 Interchange Station at Solihull in the West Midlands (courtesy Solihull Borough Council)
'We have already been given a good crack at developing technology in the region and where I work as a councillor in Solihull we have many important businesses that help us generate the per capita added capital.
'I do worry that in the UK we are not good at the commercialisation of tech and this really counts and I also am concerned about attracting new businesses to the West Midlands. I cannot blame individual governments over the years, there have been successive issues, whoever is in government, but politicians in London have their soundbites but do not understand the problems that local government has, for instance in housing. It isn't numbers that is going to solve the problem, numbers are not going to deliver on their own.
'I am not worried about delivering quality because with MMC, quality in the building of new homes is improving all the time. In Solihull, we are required to define space for 8,000 homes on green belt. But it is the design that makes a place and green infrastructure is so important. We need connected habitats for wildlife as well as people. I have a lot of respect for affordable homes but for planning reasons you don't see as many starter homes as you used to and I think we have lost the diversity for the private market.
'With new infrastructure, it is all about location. When HS2 was first announced, they were going to build the first station in Solihull, next to Birmingham International and I said to them if you are going to do that, I want businesses and homes there. We have got Warwick University involved now in our Arden Cross development and I think there is a very good opportunity to build a health innovation campus in that location. You could lead on health diagnostics in that place, and we are only an hour from London in that spot. We could be the best in Europe in that sector.'
Above: aerial view of Harwell Campus, Oxfordshire looking towards the Vale of the White Horse (courtesy Harwell Campus and ARC Group) Originally founded in 1946 to tackle the energy crisis and advance nuclear technology Harwell Campus is home to a federation of leading science and technology organisations and facilities.
CEO of ARC Group, which manages the commercial side of Harwell Campus, Stuart Grant, was brought into the conversation and told Future Cities Forum:
'Prior to Covid the Oxford economy was good, then the pandemic happened and all the investors turned up to the city because science was the best place to invest in, and that meant money from Brookfield and others going into science campuses. So you see science parks doing well with for instance Culham currently expanding. But I worry about infrastructure in the region. My career has taken place in areas such as Asia and the politicians there get ahead of growth, but in the UK if central and local government do not keep ahead of the curve, there will be a catastrophe.'
Infrastructure encompasses broadband technology and on the day of Future Cities Forum's event at Said Business School, Oxfordshire County Council announced that 'technology laboratories, start ups and research institutions at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, near Didcot, are set to benefit from enhanced wireless 5G connectivity. It said:
'On behalf of England’s Connected Heartland (ECH), Oxfordshire County Council has selected Vodafone to build and manage a 5G standalone mobile private network serving the campus following a competitive procurement process. Vodafone will begin work on the project over the coming weeks.
'England’s Connected Heartland is a 5G Innovation Region encompassing Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Central Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. Coordinated by Oxfordshire County Council – and funded by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology – it is working to accelerate advanced wireless adoption for economic, social and environmental benefits. The project at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus is funded by central government and will showcase how advanced wireless connectivity can benefit advanced manufacturing industry.
'The Harwell Science and Innovation Campus is renowned for its cutting edge laboratories, start ups and research institutions, such as the European Space Agency’s European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications (ECSAT) facility that hosts a 5G/6G hub. The hub works on setting the standards for integrating satellites with terrestrial networks, as well as drawing technology and product roadmaps, through its space for 5G/6G and sustainable connectivity programme.
'The 5G mobile private network (MPN) will provide a highspeed, secure network for businesses and organisations at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus. This network enables customisation of performance and characteristics to meet specific connectivity needs.
'MPNs facilitate the creation of specialised services that are not feasible on public networks, thereby fostering innovation in sectors such as manufacturing, transport and logistics, energy, and healthcare. This allows for advanced use cases including asset tracking, drone detection, machine-to-machine connectivity, condition monitoring, and augmented and virtual reality, among others.'
Above: CGI of life sciences space (courtesy HOK)
Inclusivity in the design of laboratories has been another concern for Harwell. Stuart Grant told Future Cities Forum that there was a need to think of a broader range of needs amongst scientists:
'There are neurodiverse challenges in design. Hats off to ARC's development director, Jenny Gardner for the research in this area that also involves HOK and the Unversity of the West of Scotland. We have a one hundred thousand square feet of co-lab space at Harwell and we need to accommodate a broad range of needs in that. The research has been very well received and we are going to make it work. We have five incubators with one hundred and twenty start ups. These are small companies ranging from one to seventy people and some in the energy tech area. We need to celebrate this achievement and we don't join up the dots enough across the science landscape.'
A groundbreaking study conducted by ARC – Advanced Research Clusters, HOK, and the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) has revealed that nearly half (48.1%) of all survey respondents who work in lab settings identify as neurodivergent. This is more than double the global average (20%) of people who identify as neurodivergent. Further, a quarter (25.5%) of lab workers responding to the survey identified as autistic, which is 25 times the general UK average (1%).* Because of this, spaces designed to foster technological and scientific innovation are inadvertently stifling the potential of the brilliant minds working within them by not addressing the sensory processing needs of the occupants.
To date, there has been little research into creating inclusive scientific spaces. Focused on science and technology innovators in lab environments, this study aimed to identify how individuals respond to sensory stimulation in current lab designs. It revealed how neurodivergent individuals are particularly sensitive to auditory, visual and tactile elements, exposing that many existing laboratories are not designed to address these needs holistically. These sensory distractions are linked to cognitive interruptions such as loss of focus and disruption of creativity and innovation, which directly impacts employee engagement, satisfaction and productivity.
The study also revealed that fewer than a third (29.9%) of the next generation of innovators consider themselves neurotypical. Without inclusive lab designs, the scientific research profession risks undermining these brilliant minds, leading to reduced productivity, poor recall, burnout, stress and recruitment and retention challenges. ARC supports over 300 science and tech organizations and over 10,000 innovators. The anonymized study included lab-based users from ARC’s network, including the renowned Harwell Science Campus, science departments at the University of Oxford and participants from selected European science campuses.
Jenny Gardner, ARC’s development director, said: “At ARC, we understand the importance of creating spaces that support our members in solving the world’s greatest challenges. Until now, the industry has failed to address the needs and experiences of neurodiverse individuals, prioritizing sterile, modern looks and open-plan co-working spaces without areas to decompress. We’re committed to changing this by designing inclusive scientific spaces that enable our members to deliver life-changing science.”
The ARC, HOK and UWS team explored ways to identify sensory preferences and challenges and to develop design principles critical to the performance, sense of belonging and overall satisfaction of the entrepreneurs using lab spaces. Studies have shown that spaces that support diverse thinking enhance creativity and innovation by 20%.**
Kay Sargent, HOK’s director of thought leadership, interiors, said: “You don’t have to be neurodivergent to be annoyed by sound, temperature, or light. But what might be annoying for someone who is neurotypical might be debilitating to someone with ADHD, autism or other neurodivergence. It’s about making spaces more functional for 100% of the people. By creating neuro-flexible spaces, we are enabling some of the world’s brightest minds to come together, allowing super-creative entrepreneurs to find their own personal, comfortable space.”
Above: new commercial science building at Southampton Science Park (courtesy Scott Brownrigg)
Scott Brownrigg is very aware of the diverse needs of science lab occupiers and has been actively engaged in designing new buildings with this in mind.
Plans for a new multi-tenancy research and development building at the entrance to The University of Southampton Science Park have been approved by Test Valley Borough Council. Designed by Scott Brownrigg for Southampton Science Park, the scheme creates 3,400 sqm of much needed new laboratory space, supporting the Park’s commitment to fuel innovation and elevate the presence of British science and technology on the world stage.
The three-storey building creates a sense of motion as its curved form embraces and activates a sweeping bend at the main entrance to the site, representing a seamless flow of ideas and collaboration, and acts as a gateway for future developments across the Science Park. A sloping green sedum roof also seamlessly integrates the design into the Park’s natural setting and enhances biodiversity onsite.
The curved building features a sleek glazed facade providing exceptional levels of natural light and views out over the park setting. The façade’s design emphasises the building’s dynamic form, using vertical aluminium fins and metal panels to create rhythm across the elevation and manage solar gain.
Inside, the spaces have been optimised to provide businesses with the flexibility to adapt the layout to suit their needs. The design places people at the centre of the scheme, prioritising comfort, accessibility, and connectivity. Interiors have been designed to take advantage of natural light and views outside, create communal gathering spaces and enable an environment that fosters wellbeing and community.
The scheme has been designed to meet the objectives of national and local planning policies, including providing space for businesses to grow and innovate. A fabric first approach supports the Park’s sustainability objectives for a low-energy, low-carbon building, and sustainable design measures include high-performance glazing, ultra-efficient heating, cooling and water systems, and onsite renewable energy generation helping to minimise operational carbon.
Construction on the development is due to start on site Q1 2025 and is expected to complete in 2026. The building also forms part of Southampton Science Park’s strategic masterplan to 2050.
Scott Brownrigg Director, Ed Hayden, who leads the practice's life sciences and tech sector work commented:
'We faced that challenge at ARM in Cambridge, where there is the most diverse range of people working. There are two and a half thousand employees and the standard idea of open plan spaces does not work. We need to look more closely at the issues in order to create the best environment for the most creative of people. It is about talent attraction and we need to encourage those people into these spaces and get the best out of them.
'I also do think that we need to be aware of what is happening over the Channel. I have visited developments in Belgium, the Netherlands and in Paris. There is the amazing Corda Campus 'school of the future' at Kempische Steenweg near Maastricht in Belgium. The Corda arena is the biggest digital arena with 5,000 people. It was newly made from 2015. There is lots of competition to create places that attract talent.. An example is the Station F campus in Paris, with 1,000 start ups under one roof. We can't sit on our laurels.'
The UK Atomic Energy Authority also joined our Oxford forum to discuss how scientists need to become more business-focussed.
Rob Buckingham, Executive Director at the UKAEA, a robotics expert and a Director of RACE - the Centre for Remote Applications in Challenging Environments - commented on the assertion that the UK finds it difficult to translate research breakthroughs into commercial successes like our competitors in the USA:
'Elon Musk, the tech billionaire, is effectively the incoming 'Vice President' of the USA, and he runs Tesla, which is the biggest robotics company in the world. He is investing a lot in AI. Why is he doing this? Because he wants to compete with China. Then there is China which is run by engineers. The government says we are going to be number three in the world in AI. Why number three? Because China and the USA will be number one and two and we cannot compete size-wise.
'The major challenges we have include climate change and technological change. We are going to be doing some very interesting things for the future of humanity over the next few years, and Oxford and Oxfordshire should be at the heart of that. All sorts of things will flow from that including infrastructure and jobs. The reason we are doing fusion (at Culham) is because we have to sort out the energy issue. We have got to be 'William' and modern rather than 'Victorian' in our thinking, especially around our infrastructure. We have to re-build and re-think. It will take bravery to reimagine.'
Public sector entities, the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) and the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s (STFC) Hartree Centre, have partnered with technology pioneer, IBM, to work on designing future experimental fusion powerplants.
In recent news, the UKAEA, the UK’s national organisation responsible for researching and delivering fusion energy, will provide programme requirements, domain expertise and selected data from its JET and MAST-U machines.
IBM, as a pioneer in high-performance computing (HPC), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Quantum technologies, together with STFC’s Hartree Centre – renowned for its heritage in making HPC, extreme-scale AI, and other digital solutions accessible to industry and the public sector – will bring unparalleled digital expertise to the partnership. The collaboration will leverage IBM and STFC’s expertise in AI alongside UKAEA’s data and modelling capabilities to create “foundation models” capable of learning the fundamental dynamics of the experimental fusion data.
The partnership brings together fusion scientists and AI experts from the three organisations and aims to drive transformative breakthroughs in applying AI to fusion powerplant design and experimental facility operations. The initiative supports the growth of the UK’s fusion sector, addressing a need to “re-engineer” design for the AI, exascale, and fusion delivery era.
In separate news, the UKAEA welcomes the decision to proceed with the Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) road scheme, which will bring significant improvements to transport infrastructure in Oxfordshire and the wider UK.
This initiative is an important step towards enhancing major transport connectivity, reducing congestion, and improving walking and cycling provisions, paving the way for more sustainable forms of travel to Culham Campus.
UKAEA CEO, Prof Sir Ian Chapman, said: “The scheme will support growth for the UK’s economy through clustering innovative and growing companies at Culham Campus. It will also enable much-needed infrastructure to support local communities. We look forward to seeing the positive impact this project will bring.”
The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) and the Oxford Robotics Institute (ORI), University of Oxford, have recently achieved a first-ever autonomous robot deployment in a fusion facility. The 35-day trial took place in UKAEA’s Joint European Torus (JET) facility, which until its recent scientific operational shutdown, was one of the largest and most powerful fusion research machines in the world.
In a step towards the commercial viability of fusion energy, a world-leading robotics alliance has successfully demonstrated that part of a fusion facility’s maintenance can be carried out by an autonomous robot, thus making such work safer for humans and more cost efficient for its operator.
Image below courtesy of UKAEA.
Comments