Brightest and most innovative business minds to come together at major Science Park conference in Coventry

A major national conference bringing together the brightest and most innovative business minds will take place this month in association with a growing Midlands science park celebrating its 40th anniversary.

The 40th anniversary UK Science Park Association (UKSPA) Conference & Gala Awards Dinner is happening at the University of Warwick’s Slate Conference Centre from Wednesday October 16th to Friday October 18th.

It comes as the University of Warwick Science Park – a founding member of the UKSPA - also celebrates its 40th year.

The event will hear from a myriad of insightful speakers across the three days, focusing on the role science parks and innovation locations will play in bridging the gap between cutting-edge ideas and commercial success into the future, something the University of Warwick Science Park has been pioneering since 1984.

UKSPA has nearly 150 members representing science park and innovation locations across the breadth of the UK.

These locations provide office and lab space to more than 6,000 science and technology businesses and organisations employing an estimated 140,000 staff.

It is a key part of the innovation ecosystem in the UK providing critical facilities, support and networks to growing science and technology businesses, helping them develop and commercialise new innovative products and solutions.

The UKSPA membership has doubled in size over the past 15 years as new science parks are being established in the UK and existing ones continue to secure further investment to expand.

The Conference will also feature informal networking events, fringe panel sessions, and culminates in a gala awards dinner celebrating the 40 years of innovations UKSPA members have contributed to the global economy.

The University of Warwick Science Park will also be offering tours of its original site at the Venture Centre, that has previously been home to the likes of Sir Clive Sinclair and the development of his C5 and is now home to dozens of forward-thinking businesses.

Visitors will be able to see the centre’s new ‘Ignite’ business lounge – named after its incubation programme for innovative start-ups – and its improved cafeteria, as well as the many tenants at the cutting edge of their respective industries.

Mark Tock, Chief Operations Officer at the University of Warwick Science Park, added: “There’s a great synergy in the Science Park and UKSPA both celebrating their 40th anniversaries at the same time, and we’re delighted the conference has chosen to come to the University of Warwick – which itself is marking its 60th anniversary next year.

“We’re really excited to be able to show visitors the improvements we’ve made here, as we embark on an ambitious growth strategy to enable the Science Park to attract the very best talent in a range of sectors.

“The conference has also attracted an incredible breadth of speakers and panellists, and it its sure to be a fascinating three days.

“Science Parks across the country have made an incredible contribution to the economy and to society by helping to commercialise ideas, something we continue to see time and again here at the University of Warwick Science Park.

“In addition, the West Midlands is home to 25 per cent of the country’s Science Parks which underlines the strength of the region in cutting-edge innovation and the crucial role it will play in creating and establishing revolutionary new technologies.

“We’re looking forward to welcoming fellow West Midlands Science Parks and research networks at the conference to celebrate that with us.

“We truly are the bridge between academia and business and this is a fantastic opportunity to recognise that and also to look to the future.”

John Leake, Chair at UKSPA, added: “The 40th Anniversary Conference is an excellent opportunity to celebrate the founding of UKSPA and its critical impact on the development of the high-tech in supporting the commercialisation of innovation in the UK over the past four decades.

“It is also an important time for us to look to the future and discuss how the sector and our clients takes advantage of the evolution of AI across areas of business, play our part in meeting the Net Zero challenge and ensure that UKSPA members and the businesses at our sites utilise the full diversity of the talent available in the UK. I’m sure it will be an inspiring and fascinating conference but also one that will set out some of the challenges that we will need to tackle.”  

Tickets are available at https://www.ukspa.org.uk/ukspa-40th-anniversary-conference-tickets/