A new report has highlighted the opportunities that the UK can take advantage of following its departure from the EU, and can now develop UK-specific regulation that puts patients first.
A UK.GOV press release states that the report, published by the Regulatory Horizons Council (RHC), sets out how the UK could strengthen the regulation of medical devices while learning lessons from the response to the coronavirus pandemic while boosting the UK’s world-leading life sciences sector.
The RHC is an independent committee that identifies the regulation needed to foster technological innovation and provide the government with impartial and expert advice on regulatory reform.
The new proposals set out how medical devices such as pacemakers or implantable defibrillators should be regulated to ensure that healthcare challenges can be tackled effectively, now and in the future.
The report suggests that the UK’s departure from the EU is an opportunity for the country to develop a UK-specific regulatory system that puts patients at the heart of the decision making process.
This could be by increasing patient representation on expert groups for advice on medical research and devices, or by providing evaluations of medical devices that are easily understandable.
It highlights the opportunities now available to the UK, not only to respond more quickly to new advances in technology but to work with like-minded countries in shaping international regulation.
Life Sciences Minister Nadhim Zahawi said: “Our life sciences industry is at forefront of global, modern regulation, as demonstrated by the speed and flexibility of the UK’s development and rollout of COVID vaccines.
“Today’s report supports our ambition to capitalise on the UK’s departure from the European Union and put in place streamlined regulation that will ensure we can bring to market safe and effective medical devices quickly, benefitting patients across the country.”
The report calls for lessons to be learnt from the UK’s COVID-19 response, including addressing delays in medical advice approval, and recommends that pandemic preparedness should now include fast-track evaluation of new in-vitro diagnostics and that the reporting of diagnostic tests be more transparent and standardised.
It also highlights opportunities for the UK to take a leading role in the development of international standards, particularly in sectors of importance such as AI, while exploring membership of international programmes such as the Medical Device Single Audit Program (MDSAP).
Also suggested is the use of medical devices as a template to help enable broader UK regulatory reform that improves patient safety and system efficiency by identifying areas where regulatory reform may attract inward investment and growth.
The publication of the report follows the launch of the government’s new Life Sciences Vision, published last month, which outlined ambitions for the sector over the next decade, including the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA) forthcoming consultation on a new regulatory framework for medical devices.
The Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has written to the Regulatory Horizons Council welcoming the report, and the Department of Health and Social Care will respond in detail to its recommendations following the response to the forthcoming MHRA consultation.
If you’re looking for life science recruitment agencies, talk to us today.
The government has published a new Life Sciences Vision strategy which sets out its agenda for the sector over the next ten years. At the forefront of the document is a mission to boost research into dementia and promote the earlier diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The strategy promises to build on the successes of the UK’s response to Covid-19.
The plan was co-developed with businesses and industry experts to set out a healthcare framework which will focus on the prevention, early diagnosis, and monitoring of disease in the early stages. Research and development into new drugs, diagnostics, and medical technology will be prioritised, so they can be rolled out within shorter timescales.
The strategy has been welcomed by leaders in the life sciences industry, Pharma Phorum reports. The BioIndustry Association (BIA) and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) both collaborated with the government to draw up the document.
ABPI chief executive Richard Torbett said it is an “ambitious…blueprint for how the UK can become a global hub for life sciences and, in turn, a science superpower.”
A recent BIA revealed that the UK’s biotech companies now rank third in the world, after US hubs in Massachusetts and San Francisco. The UK industry attracted almost £1.6bn in financing between March and the end of May. The government is also launching a £200m Life Sciences Investment programme, which is set to attract £400m in private capital.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “We are indebted to the ingenuity of UK life sciences and its pioneers, with the discovery of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine and the seamless collaboration between our scientists, industry, regulators and NHS saving millions of lives during the pandemic.”
Johnson added: “We must make sure this is the norm and use this new way of working to search for life-changing breakthroughs against diseases such as cancer, dementia and obesity, as we have done with COVID.”
Besides forefronting the fight against cancer and dementia, the strategy will sustain the momentum in vaccine discovery, development, and manufacturing. It will also focus on the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease and target major risk factors such as obesity, and reducing the mortality rates from respiratory diseases.
Furthermore, the blueprint seeks to address the underlying biology of aging, and increase the understanding of mental health conditions.
The government has also outlined the ways it intends to support industry to achieve these aims. It has set out a plan to simplify the governance and oversight of NHS health data, promote the role of the NHS as an innovation partner, and boost spending on research and development. It will also seek to broaden the ways UK companies can access finance.
The blueprint has also proposed the creation of a Life Science Scale Up Taskforce, which will identify and work to overcome issues which are obstructing further development in the sector. With health and science high on the agenda, the UK is fast becoming a Life Sciences superpower, with clear ambitions for the future.
If you need help with life science permanent recruitment, please get in touch today.
Many recruitment agencies and employers now use social media to source job candidates, so it should be used not just in your personal life, but also to help you find the right career.
According to the Society for Human Resource Management, over the past year, organisations have stepped up their use of social media in the recruiting process even further, so you will be missing out on opportunities if you don’t have an up to date online presence.
Social media sites allow you to establish your professional brand, and connect with influencers who can help raise your profile and direct you to the most appropriate contacts. You will also have access to job adverts which may be exclusively on social networking platforms, and your CV will be seen by a much wider range of potential employers.
You will not only be more visible to recruiters, but you will also be able to apply for roles more quickly and easily, giving you a competitive advantage over other jobseekers. Job boards often contain adverts which are already several days old, but a range of social media contacts will allow you to interact with recruiters in real time.
The social media landscape changes rapidly, and if you don’t currently have any online presence, it can be difficult to know where to begin. A good starting point is to join LinkedIn, which is the ‘go-to’ site for recruiters and head-hunters to search for candidates. It essentially acts as an online CV where you can showcase your skills.
You can also include personal testimonials on LinkedIn to lend credibility and authenticity to your profile. They could be from managers, colleagues, academic contacts, or anyone you have worked for in the past. Even If you think your CV is enough, recruiters will usually look for your LinkedIn profile too, and may think it odd or even suspect if you don’t have one.
If you feel like you don’t have the time or inclination for more than one networking site, then just join LinkedIn. However, broadening your network could also widen your chances of landing your perfect job. Twitter is a more informal network than LinkedIn, where people post and exchange short messages and images, and retweet links to useful websites.
Companies often use it to briefly advertise roles, with a link to a more detailed web page. You can set up a profile and follow companies in your field of interest, and any relevant publications, societies, and so on. Some people use Twitter in a personal or humorous manner, but keep your profile professional and avoid wading into any online conflicts.
Facebook is a huge social networking site with billions of users, including recruiters and businesses. If you want to include it in your job search, pay close attention to your privacy settings, because it is easy for the boundaries between your personal and professional life to become blurred.
Even if you are not actively job hunting, future recruiters will be reassured by a consistent and credible online presence, so it is a great idea to cultivate your network as soon as possible, and keep it up to date.
If you are looking for science recruitment agencies in the UK, please contact us today.
British multinational pharmaceutical firm GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has set out its vision for a new life sciences campus in Stevenage, which could create up to 5,000 jobs over the next decade.
BBC News reports that the company intends to sell 33 acres of land at its 92-acre R&D site in Stevenage, turning it into one of Europe’s largest ‘clusters’ for biotech and early-stage life science companies.
Stevenage, just north of London, is a key location for GSK, as it is one of the firm’s two global R&D hubs, and it is already the UK’s largest cell and gene therapy cluster, and the third-largest globally.
The Stevenage site already hosts GSK’s R&D facilities, the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGTC), and the Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst (SBC) – the latter of which is home to more than 40 companies.
The new campus, which is planned to sit next to GSK’s existing site, aims to deliver 100,000 square metres of new floor space for commercial life sciences R&D.
GSK believes the project can unlock up to £400m in new investment from a private sector developer to build up the new campus.
It is hoped that the new campus will attract world-class research organisations to Stevenage, and create opportunities for collaboration in the sector.
Tony Wood, Senior Vice President, Medicinal Science & Technology, GSK said: “The past 18 months have shown the UK life sciences sector at its best and the UK has recently unveiled an ambitious 10-year vision for the UK life sciences sector.
“Our goal is for Stevenage to emerge as a top destination for medical and scientific research by the end of the decade. We are excited to find a development partner to realise our vision to foster the next generation of world-class scientists and biotechnology firms in Britain.”
If you’re looking for UK life science recruitment agencies, talk to us today.
The diagnostics industry has been at the forefront of the battle against the global pandemic, with new technologies and solutions being developed more efficiently than ever before. The industry is now looking to artificial intelligence and digitisation to address the cancer screening backlogs that have built up during the pandemic.
Lifescience Industry reports that the innovation which was brought about in response to the global Covid outbreak will inform the approach to improving the detection, prevention, and treatment of breast and cervical cancer across the UK during the next few years.
There is currently a significant backlog, as breast and cervical cancer screening programmes were put on hold for several months. It is estimated that 600,000 cervical screening appointments were missed in April and May 2020. Furthermore, 986,000 mammograms were missed, meaning that up to 10,700 women may be living with undiagnosed cancer.
Testing is now resuming as the number of patients hospitalised with Covid is remaining low, despite the rise in cases. The article explains that new diagnostic procedures, particularly artificial intelligence guided imaging, are seen as a key tool to tackle delays in cancer diagnosis.
As cervical and breast cancer detection relies on visual detection of rare, subtle changes, it is ideally suited to AI. In this case, AI means the application of medical imaging to help accelerate detection and diagnosis. High quality images require advanced cloud storage solutions and high resolution.
The advanced technology will help to increase breast screening capacity, as fewer staff members will need to be involved in the diagnostic process. It is estimated that the process will be speeded up, as 13% less time is needed to read the mammogram images.
AI also has great potential to increase the efficiency of cervical cancer screening. The digital cytology systems are able to evaluate tens of thousands of cells from a single patient in a matter of seconds, and present the most relevant diagnostic material for analysis by a cytotechnologist. This has proved to increase efficiency without sacrificing accuracy.
If you are looking for animal technician jobs in the UK, please contact us today.
Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Finance Kate Forbes and UK Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove recently attended a ceremony to mark significant construction progress at a new £40 million BioHub.
Scottish Construction Now reports that the Aberdeen life sciences site is scheduled to open in October 2022, and will be home to 400 scientific entrepreneurs, and aims to double the number of life sciences companies in the area by 2027.
BioHub will house spin-out, start-up, and scaling businesses that will develop new drugs, treatments, therapies and technologies, and create high-skilled jobs to help drive economic recovery in the fast-growing industry sector.
Opportunity North East is the lead partner and a funder for the project, which has secured £20 million of capital funding jointly provided by the Scottish Government and UK Government through the Aberdeen City Region Deal.
The flagship BioHub will join Aberdeen’s Foresterhill Health Campus, one of Europe’s largest integrated clinical, research and teaching sites for life sciences and medicine and will catalyse further collaborative innovation across the academic, commercial, and healthcare community.
Opportunity North East chairman Sir Ian Wood said that Biohub is an ‘iconic and truly transformational project’ that will deliver a huge boost to northeast Scotland’s life sciences sector, providing infrastructure to help support and attract businesses.
Ms Forbes said: “The life sciences sector is a thriving part of Scotland’s economy, growing at more than 10 per cent a year, providing more than 41,000 jobs and on target to achieve £8 billion turnover by 2025.”
Mr Gove said the BioHub will deliver a “world-class facility to support new business start-ups and expand Scotland’s powerhouse of life sciences innovation”, and added it “will bring new jobs to the region”.
If you’re looking for life science recruitment agencies, get in touch with our team today.
The Home Office Animals in Science Regulation Unit is changing the way that it is structured and operates as a regulator, to provide greater consistency, clarity and a more structured approach to inspections via a new audit system.
In practice this means that there will be new ways of communicating with ASRU, removing the dependence upon one-to-one communication with local inspectors in favour of dedicated teams for different regulatory activities.
The changes take effect from 5th July 2021. Any currently planned Inspector visits after that date are likely to be cancelled, unless these related to a specific ongoing matter.
These changes form part of a transitionary period for ASRU, so it is important to provide regular feedback on how they are working in your establishments.
No changes to the primary legislation governing animal research are expected. However, there will be updates made to key guidance documents, including the Guidance on the Operation of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 and the Code of Practice for the Housing and Care of Animals Bred, Supplied or Used for Scientific Purposes.
Routine inspections by the Animals in Science Regulation Unit are no longer going to be conducted by a local Inspector. Instead, there will be three different types of formal audit carried out by dedicated members of the new Compliance Assurance team:
It is expected that more than one member of the Compliance Assurance team will attend each audit, to ensure objectivity. Each audit will provide a clear outcome and contribute to the establishment’s overall risk profile.
You will no longer direct queries to a single allocated Inspector or Single Point of Contact (SPoC). There will be dedicated teams for Regulatory Advice, Compliance Assurance and Licensing. All queries will be sent to dedicated inboxes for each team and will receive centralised, consistent responses. Urgent matters should be marked as such and will be triaged by dedicated staff.
Get in touch with Agenda today, we can help you prepare your facility for these changes.
Contact us today – hello@agendalifesciences.co.uk
Thursday 1st July 2021 is “Be Open about Animal Research Day”: #BOARD21. A global social media campaign supported by the European Animal Research Association (EARA). #BOARD21 aims to celebrate the increasingly proactive approach by the biomedical community to communicate about animal research. Here at Agenda Life Sciences, we have many initiatives to promote open communications about animal research which we’d like to share with you. Our Head of Facility Management, Laura Gilbey, answers #BOARD21’s questions about our activities supporting openness:
How does your institution communicate about the use of animals in research?
We communicate about animal research via our website, social media platforms and face to face. We interact with a broad audience, each wanting different information for different purposes and that is why we support such a broad approach.
Click to view our Animals in Research Position.
Can you give us an example of your proactive approach to communications?
Our interactions with students at colleges and universities throughout the UK brings information about animal research to the classroom. This is proactive as students interested in science and animal care don’t need to navigate the relatively unfamiliar animal research sector to find informative, truthful and balanced information. Tutors, lectures and career guidance teams frequently attend our educational outreach events, so even students we don’t meet have a source of guidance on what future opportunities are available to them.
Doing this face to face allows us to answer questions about what, why and how we perform animal research. It encourages an open discourse made of all opinions. The physical presence highlights to the next generation of scientists and animal care professionals that animal research is no longer a topic people are afraid to talk about and that we are people they can relate to.
Throughout COVID-19, where the classroom became a virtual environment, we were still welcomed by many colleges and universities to host sessions online. We made our presentations available to teaching staff and participated in careers guidance sessions online. Home working has not been a barrier to our communications!
What are the rewards of talking about the use of animals in research?
I find it very rewarding when students comment after our chats, that animal research isn’t what they thought it would be. When they reach out for more information because they’re interested in learning more. When I meet an animal technician and its someone I’ve met at a lecture during their education. When I see on LinkedIn a student I’ve spoken with has secured a job as an animal technician. I find all these things rewarding because it’s adding to that individual, and society’s, understanding of animal research.
What are the challenges of speaking about animal research?
Like on any other topic, there will always be a range of opinions. It can be challenging to talk to an audience who hold a different opinion to yours, yet we do it all the time. For managers and business leaders reading this post, do you always talk to your teams knowing they will support everything you say? Probably not. You most likely will anticipate a challenge or two from time to time. But does this stop you talking? To the broader audience, do your best friends all support the same football team, or listen to the same music? Probably not. But would it stop you talking about football or music?
So, the real challenge is not about facing challenging opinions, but rather one of confidence.
Why do you think it is important to support #BOARD21?
I hope #BOARD21 gives inspiration to organisations on ways to communicate about animal research. I hope with more information shared, society learns a little more about the incredibly important work our sector and our scientists do. I hope other organisations and leaders see the rewards over the challenges, to encourage continued openness well after #BOARD21 is over. And most of all I hope if you have read this and want to know more about how you can support open communications in your organisation, you’ll ask us. We’d be happy to talk!
A North East investment group has said it has facilitated a record number of new investments and expansions during 2020, despite the issues presented by the pandemic.
According to Business Live, Invest Newcastle, which aims to attract investment to the North East and help local firms achieve growth through financial packages, says it has supported 26 new businesses invest and relocate to Newcastle and Gateshead, creating and securing 2,500 jobs in the region.
With the pandemic meaning many local investment visits were put on hold, the increase was achieved by Invest Newcastle promoting the region to global investors.
A total of 84 per cent of the investments were made in the life sciences, creative, digital and tech sectors, which continue to be major growth sectors in the North East.
The investment group also reported a significant rise in investment in the fintech sector, most noticeably witnessed when global fintech company Xplor chose Newcastle from a shortlist of ten UK cities as its newest location, which created more than 200 jobs.
Along with helping firms move to the North East, Invest Newcastle also helped 18 businesses to expand and grow their business, which equates to an increase of 80 per cent in 2019/20.
Jennifer Hartley, director at Invest Newcastle said: “Our region’s strengths in digital and tech and life science have really shone through, showing confidence in our city as a business location, and our ability to attract and retain the best talent.
“Inward investment activity is critical to our region’s economic recovery and to support our work we have recently expanded our team, with three new team members who will help us to attract further investment, jobs, and opportunities.”
The group hopes that more businesses will see the appeal of the North East following the region’s decision to promote itself globally as a high potential opportunity (HPO), which is selected as so, will support inward investment by allowing the region to showcase its assets to investors in 177 cities around the world via the Department for International Trade’s global network.
Coun Joyce McCarty, cabinet member for inclusive economy at Newcastle City Council, said: “Inward investment is crucial as our city recovers from the pandemic. The North East has one of the fastest-growing digital clusters in the UK, with this sector continuing to grow, particularly within the fintech space, and we continue to be a hot spot for life sciences, with our world-class universities and outstanding hospitals trust contributing to our offer.”
She added that the strengths of the region play a huge role in the recovery of the local economy and that it was ‘promising’ to see businesses recognising the area as a ‘northern hub city’, as many firms look to move away from London-based headquarters, seeking a batter quality of life and a fantastic talent pool.
“Newcastle City Council will continue to work hard to make sure our indigenous businesses get the support they need, create good quality well-paid jobs and help us retain graduates from our excellent universities,” she concluded.
If you’re looking for life science recruitment agencies in the UK, talk to us today,
Innova Medical Group (IMG), the world’s largest provider of rapid antigen tests, has gone into partnership with Sharp Packaging, in Caerphilly. The move will create around 300 jobs at the factory where millions of COVID rapid-flow tests will be produced.
The Chemical Engineer reports that the investment in the town of Rhymney will see the delivery of packaging machinery towards the end of June, and production is due to begin in early July. It will be the first facility in the UK to produce IMG’s tests, and the firm said the expanded Sharp site will help fill the significant demand for testing kits from the government.
Daniel Elliott, IMG’s president, said: “Innova understands the importance of speed in the fight against the pandemic and strategic contract manufacturing allows us to start local production quickly.”
He added that by domestically sourcing as much of the processes as possible, the firm is confident that the partnership with Sharp will deliver value to UK customers.
“We are making a long-term investment into the area in Wales, for not only Covid but for post-Covid and what comes next,” he said, adding that there would be a variety of jobs created, from the production line level to management, and healthcare quality assurance.
Ian Morgan, general manager of Sharp UK, said that the important partnership will allow Sharp to expand their facility by a third as well as the creation of jobs for the region.
Welsh economy minister Vaughan Gething said: “Wales welcomes Innova’s investment and the hundreds of new job opportunities it creates, boosting the local economy and further enhancing Wales’ reputation in the life sciences sector.”
Gething added that the Welsh government has worked closely with Sharp before, and supported the expansion which has been crucial in job creation for Rhymney.
If you’re looking for pharmaceutical recruitment agencies in the UK, get in touch today.
The Covid-19 crisis has fuelled record levels of investment in the UK life sciences industry, The Guardian reports. In the first three months of 2021, private funding rounds and stock market flotations have raised £10.6bn within the industry, which is already almost half of last year’s record amount.
Medical equipment companies, drug manufacturers, and diagnostics firms in particular are attracting new investment deals, such as mergers, acquisitions, public listings, venture capital and private equity. Last year, investments totalled nearly £20bn, and a new study predicts that in 2021 the amount will increase substantially.
UK life science companies have proved their world-leading status during the coronavirus pandemic, developing vaccines, and carrying out research and trials into the novel virus. This has attracted the interest of new investors who may have looked elsewhere in the past.
There is also a growing social and corporate governance agenda which is creating a supportive environment for scientific research and development. The Health Secretary Matt Hancock recently announced that the government intended to build on the acceleration of progress in the sector, with new funding and a pledge of commitment.
The research was conducted jointly between property group Savills, the design practice Perkins & Will, and the policy advisory firm Blackstock Consulting. The report also predicts that life sciences real estate will experience a boom.
The UK has 1,226 life sciences firms, which are mostly located between Oxford, Cambridge and London. However, there has recently been development further north, in Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Liverpool and Newcastle. These emerging companies are attracting investment in labs and estates, which Savills predicts will reach £550m in 2021.
If the current pace of growth continues, the report forecasts that investment in UK life sciences property markets could reach up to £2bn by 2025, which is 10 times more than in the past five years. US investors including private equity firms are thought to be driving this, as they are keen to back thriving and expanding sectors.
Andrew Teacher, editor of the report, said:
“This may also lead to a flood of new players entering the sector, especially if the real estate investors and developers who have had their fingers burned in virus-ravaged sectors such as offices and retail, look to either repurpose existing stock, or change tack to take advantage of the booming demand for life sciences real estate.”
In the past, taking on life sciences investments was seen as a long haul, as the discovery, development, trialling, and market approval of a drug typically takes 10 to 15 years. However, the recent rapid development and rollout of the various coronavirus vaccines has proved that the process can be expediated when necessary.
It is also possible that investors and developers are waking up to the environmental and social benefits of the life sciences industry, with companies such as AstraZeneca acting for the greater good. Its not-for-profit Covid vaccine, developed in collaboration with Oxford scientists, can be easily distributed and rolled out to the poorer countries of the world.
If you are looking for pharmaceutical recruitment agencies UK, please contact us today.