Set to create over 2,500 high-quality jobs for people across the region and unlock over £220 million of investment, the West Yorkshire Investment Zone focuses on its internationally renowned healthtech and digital tech cluster. It has been developed in partnership with local government and universities.
The Investment Zone will support universities and businesses to work together to create digital tech solutions that solve some of today’s biggest health challenges and which can be commercialised nationally and internationally.
It will boost innovation in the area’s thriving healthcare sector, create a talent pipeline at the forefront of technological advances, and act as a catalyst for long-term growth and jobs to deliver benefits directly to communities.
The region is already home to
- more than 600 health and life sciences companies
- 250 medtech firms
- more than 90 digital health enterprises, and
- 22% of all UK digital health jobs.
At the heart of West Yorkshire, Leeds is already leading the way in health innovation. This new investment in digital and healthtech will accelerate plans for the Leeds Innovation Arc, kickstarting the development of the Innovation Village on the Leeds General Infirmary site with the refurbishment of the Old Medical School to create a world-class healthtech innovation hub.
Co-locating entrepreneurs, businesses, clinicians and academics in this way will help deliver the first phase of development of the 12.5-acre site, creating 4,000 new jobs and up to £13bn economic boost for the region.
For more Leeds information, visit https://news.leeds.gov.uk/news/investment-zone-boosts-leeds-innovation-ambitions-and-vision
For more West Yorkshire information, visit https://www.investwestyorkshire.com/investmentzone/
For the Government’s West Yorkshire Investment Zone announcement, visit https://www.gov.uk/government/news/boost-for-uks-life-sciences-sector-as-west-yorkshire-hosts-englands-third-investment-zone