At present Oxford is renowned globally for its world-class university, but in comparison its reputation as a burgeoning tech and life science hub still remains relatively unknown.

As a historical city with numerous restrictions when it comes to new development, there remains limited room to grow. However, with plans for as much as 9.6 million sq ft of new commercial office and R&D space as part of the Oxford-Cambridge Innovation Arc, the chance for this cluster to reach its full potential could be limitless.

The tech and life science sectors are already significant, with a number of firms including Oxford Nanopore and Oxford Biomedica having made international names for themselves. This is largely due to both the University of Oxford and Oxford Brookes University, which are hotbeds for talent and have been instrumental in funding spin-out businesses that focus primarily on these areas. To aid this the Oxford Sciences Innovation fund was formed in 2015, providing over £600 million to invest in new specialist companies.

Consequently, Oxford has garnered global attention from a number of firms, particularly in the US, who are starting to realise the potential of this emerging market. As the clusters continue to grow and hone their offers, we are likely to see demand from companies based on both the East and West coasts of America who are looking for an ideal springboard into Europe. These businesses will be able to capitalise on the comparably cheaper rents and living costs to similar clusters in locations such as Boston, Massachusetts.

There is no doubt that this has already started. If you look at the numbers, in 2016 just 8 per cent of Oxford’s take-up could be attributed to the life science and tech sectors. Fast forward to 2017 and not only did transactions double, but this figure jumped as high as 80 per cent and has remained constant to this day.

This major shift is undoubtedly down to the significant investment that has been made into facilities such as Harwell and the proposed development at Oxford North, but is it enough?

This is why initiatives like the ‘Innovation Arc’ are essential. By unlocking these sites it should take enormous pressure off historical centres such as Oxford and Cambridge and allow businesses more breathing room when it comes to expansion.

What’s more, this corridor will be home to 10 universities, including a new institution in Milton Keynes that will focus solely on technology, essentially creating a ready-made workforce.

This will be crucial to retaining talent, especially in the face of limited housing supply at either end of the Arc. What’s clear is that if Oxford cannot cater for these rapidly expanding businesses, they won’t hesitate to go somewhere that can. For many that could mean upping sticks and moving out of the UK and back to countries such as the US.

In short, the Arc will undoubtedly help Oxford to reach its potential as a global tech hub, but in the meantime the seeds have already been sewn for considerable growth.

Further information

Read more: Report: The Oxford Cambridge Innovation Arc