High Commission of Canada and ISED visit CGT Catapult Manufacturing Innovation Centre

Last Thursday (21st July), Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGT Catapult) and Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst (SBC) welcomed Eric Costen, Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Industry Sectors, at Canada’s department for Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED)– along with representatives from the High Commission of Canada, Innovate UK  and Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership – to the Stevenage Biomanufacturing Cluster.

The visit provided the CGT Catapult, Innovate UK and SBC teams an opportunity to showcase the cell and gene biomanufacturing opportunities available through the Stevenage cluster, highlighting the potential for future Canada-UK collaborations in this sector.

Along with a tour of the CGT Catapult Manufacturing Innovation Centre and soon-to-launch Skills and Training Labs, the visitors also received briefings on the UK landscape for cell and gene therapy development, as well as a tour of the SBC facility, home to 40+ start-ups with a focus on advanced therapeutics and cell and gene technologies.

Matthew Durdy, Chief Executive Officer of the CGT Catapult, welcomed the visit:

“It was a pleasure to welcome The Deputy Minister and his team to Stevenage and share some of the important work we’re doing to enhance ATMP manufacturing capability in the UK. We hope that visitors found the visit useful and we are excited for any potential collaborations that may arise in the future.”

Stevenage, UK, is the home of the largest cell and gene therapy cluster in Europe and the third largest cluster globally. It attracts a critical mass of companies operating within the sector and has a developed infrastructure of biomanufacturing facilities. In 2020, the Department for International Trade declared Stevenage a High Potential Opportunity Zone in recognition of the clusters national and international significance. A recent announcement from Reef Group and UBS will see up to £900m invested into the cluster with the aim of further developing the areas as highly competitive life sciences cluster.

Find out more about the CGT Catapult’s Manufacturing Innovation Centre.