Becky Crow is LightOx’s head of projects and when she isn’t busy with the day job is collaborating with the North East Combined Authority on a report about the availability of lab space in the region.
Here, Becky shares insights from the report and explains how creating the right spaces could unlock the next wave of life-science growth in the North East.
In 2023, I was delighted to lead the health and life science initiative at Invest Newcastle where we commissioned a report on assessing empty buildings suitable for conversion into lab space. This aim being to accommodate the growth of the sector in the North East.
This year, I was asked by the North East Combined Authority to revisit the findings, bringing the report up to date for 2026, developing recommendations to ensure life sciences companies have the space to grow and thrive in North East England.
Creating more space for growing life sciences companies
So why is this such an important area? At LightOx, we have personal experience of outgrowing a space and needing to expand to support our innovation journey. To provide a bit of context, in 2021 we moved into the Biosphere in Newcastle city centre , which is purpose built for emerging life sciences companies. But as the business grew, we needed more space. Luckily the team had the knowledge and experience that allowed us to develop our own lab space, to accommodate those growing needs.
For other companies, the lack of suitable space to start up in or grow into can be a real challenge. And it’s through the work of the report we found that the North East needs more facilities for SMEs that are in budget and can flex as they grow.
We have spin-outs companies coming from universities in the region, which is exactly how LightOx started, and it’s vital that we make sure these new ventures have the space they need in order to stay here as they expand.
LightOx is a huge advocate for the North East life sciences sector as a whole, and is the reason we were keen to share our own experience, use our networks to gather people’s views from across the sector, and help other businesses to grow in the same way that we have.
Buy-in from developers, landlords and businesses
To update the findings of the 2022 report, we spent time with life sciences companies that have developed their own lab space in the region including FibroFind, QuantumDX and Aelius Biotech. We wanted to capture their experiences so they could be shared across the sector, giving other businesses practical insight into how to successfully develop space suited to their needs.
We also held a workshop where we invited life science companies, property developers, architects, universities and landlords to share their views. And we partnered with Ryder Architecture and Naylors Gavin Black property consultants, who shared their expertise on the property we already have in the North East and potential for conversion.
The response and the buy-in was very positive, with people being proactive and offering lots of strong ideas and solutions. Overall, it really helped us look at what needs to happen to unlock more lab space for growing life sciences companies in the North East. The discussions created genuine traction amongst landlords and developers, who are willing to work hand-in-hand with life sciences companies to develop more spaces. All businesses need the right support and resources to succeed, and it’s been really positive to see the dial start to move.
Recommendations and practical tools
The report’s recommendations fall into two complementary areas: practical support for businesses and strategic action to stimulate the market.
For businesses, a package of hands-on tools has been created to make it easier to secure and develop lab space. This includes a regional database of buildings suitable for conversion, a step-by-step guide to finding and fitting out lab space, and free initial advice from Ryder Architecture and Naylors Gavin Black to help companies assess options and move forward with confidence.
At a strategic level, the report calls for a single regional “front door” to bring these tools together, backed by a communications programme, shared infrastructure and flexible development models that reduce risk for landlords and encourage investment in new laboratory space across the region.
Learning from each other
Moving forward, continuing to share and learn from each other will be a priority. Having more lab space in the North East is only a good thing for LightOx, and for other growing businesses, unlocking opportunity and supporting our ability to expand and attract more jobs and investors to the region.
The work LightOx is doing to develop therapies in oral cancer that will change people’s lives is something I’m incredibly passionate about, as is creating the spaces needed for other life sciences businesses to do the same. By working together – businesses, developers, landlords and local authorities, we can unlock the full potential of the North East as a hub for life sciences innovation.
Because creating more lab space isn’t just about buildings; it’s about nurturing talent, fostering collaboration and giving new ideas the room they need to grow.
