Businesses, universities, and hospitals will benefit from an £80million pound investment zone to drive the development of life-changing technologies.
The plan will be brought forward on Thursday by West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin when regional leaders meet for the final Combined Authority meeting of her mayoral term.
The first half of the 10-year, £160m West Yorkshire Healthtech and Digital Tech Investment Zone – given the green light from Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove last week – is expected to leverage over £220m of public and private sector investment over five years, creating over 2,500 skilled jobs.
The package of support will bring together universities, businesses and hospitals to deliver cutting-edge research and develop innovative new technologies for patients, to be used in the UK and world-wide.
As the home of NHS England, West Yorkshire is a global leader in health and digital technology, with universities in Bradford, Huddersfield and Leeds partnering with NHS Trusts and local firms to share their expertise, develop exciting new products, and transform patient care for millions of people.
Tracy Brabin said: “For the UK economy to prosper it needs West Yorkshire to succeed, and devolution is helping us empower our healthtech and digital sectors, transforming the lives of patients world-wide.
“This multi-million pound investment will help us build world-leading centres of innovation in Bradford, Huddersfield and Leeds, bringing together our universities, businesses and hospitals to drive the development of lifechanging technologies and deliver thousands of skilled jobs.
“Through our investment zone, we’re changing our region for the long-term, working with partners and the government to build a stronger, brighter West Yorkshire that works for all”.
The investment zone will centre around three nationally significant clusters of economic activity, powered by investment in infrastructure, skills training and business support.
They are:
- The Digital Health Enterprise Zone at the University of Bradford, which supports business growth, knowledge and skills development by connecting academics, researchers and health and social care partners. It also contributes to the training of future healthcare professionals, advancing research and commercial opportunities through its dedicated simulation space, The Technology House. Its aim is to work with other universities, local government and wider partners to make West Yorkshire the place for health tech innovation.
- A National Health Innovation Campus at the University of Huddersfield, where the university is investing over £250 million to develop a state-of-the-art campus, focused on specialist clinical teaching and research to tackle health inequalities.
- A HealthTech Innovation Hub in Leeds – a flagship project of the investment zone which will see the development of the first phase of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust’s 1 million square foot “Leeds Innovation Village” on the site of Leeds General Infirmary. This will involve the construction of the Trust’s new, world-leading, state of the art digital hospital at the Old Medical School.
Professor Shirley Congdon, Vice-Chancellor at the University of Bradford, said: “We welcome the opportunities for Bradford and West Yorkshire businesses afforded by the Investment Zone.
“Our University will offer businesses in the digital and health technology sectors access to many ways to make a difference, through innovation, workforce development and access to high end facilities, an example of which is our recent £4.8m award from Research England to develop and evaluate innovative health technology.”
