Food for thought - a section of the Wilton Centre ’ s new restaurant .
Looking for more pioneers
Completion of £ 2m refurbishment starts new era for Wilton Centre
T he £ 2m refurbishment of the Wilton Centre - a We Are Pioneer Group location - is now complete .
The six-month project has seen the creation of a new entrance , reception , co-working spaces , meeting pods and new restaurants .
“ We listened to our occupiers , and they wanted collaborative spaces to help them move towards a more flexible working model ,” said Jeroen Houtzager , the director of the centre ’ s owner .
“ On top of that we have provided the sort of quality you would normally expect to see at the city headquarters of a blue-chip company . But above all , we have created an environment where the businesses based here can flourish .”
One company already doing that is Absolute Antibody . Following its relocation to the Wilton Centre in 2014 , Absolute Antibody has increased its headcount from three to more than 50 . The company now occupies eight laboratories and offices and has significant expansion plans over the next 12 months .
In July it received a Queen ’ s Award for Enterprise in International Trade . The presentation , which took place at the Wilton Centre , had been delayed for more than a year due to the pandemic and before the company ’ s key role in the fight against Covid-19 became known .
Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen also recently visited Absolute Antibody and praised its “ world-leading work and amazing scientists ”.
He said it shows : “ That if you want a rewarding career at the cutting edge of science you don ’ t have to move to Oxford ,
Cambridge or London .
He added : “ We have a raft of brilliant businesses not only expanding , and creating good-quality , well-paid jobs , but also leading the march to battle existing diseases and responding quickly and upping their game when new ones , like coronavirus , emerge .”
Mayor Houchen is set to return alongside business leaders at the official launch , to see the results of the £ 2m refurbishment investment at the Wilton Centre .
As well as the physical changes which have taken place over the past few months , the centre is now part of a new business called We Are Pioneer Group ( WAPG ). It has been created following a £ 120m deal which saw a merger between the owner of the Wilton Centre ’ s owner Trinity IM – which also managed another five UK science parks – and BioCity Group . Its portfolio included science parks in Manchester , Glasgow and Nottingham .
The merger has resulted in the creation of the UK ’ s largest network of science and tech-focused businesses . Together the science parks cover an area of more than 2.6m square feet and is home to more than 500 pioneering businesses which are now supported by WAPG through early-stage venture capital investment and start-up and scale-up programmes .
Toby Reid , executive director at WAPG , said : “ Life sciences is a truly unique part of Britain ’ s post-Covid recovery , but effectively managing innovation hubs requires intensive management and large
networks to connect and support firms .
“ Building meaningful links to academics , researchers , governments , and pharmaceutical firms are critical for their success . WAPG will not only invest in labs but support tech transfer and accelerator programmes , helping scale up BioCity ’ s ecosystem enabling Britain to really compete with North America and the Far East .”
The £ 2m investment at the Wilton Centre and the creation of We Are Pioneer Group signals an exciting future , said the centre ’ s accommodation manager Claire Morton .
“ As people return to the workplace there ’ s a real sense of momentum ,” said Claire . “ That ’ s certainly reinforced by the unprecedented level of investment taking place throughout the Tees Valley .”
She added : “ Although the Wilton Centre is best-known for its connection with successful life science businesses such as Absolute Antibody , it is worth remembering that we are also home to companies which provide services to the life science tenants such as engineering consultancy , recruitment and finance .
“ They – and businesses who choose to relocate here - are in a prime position to benefit from the new work opportunities which have never been so readily available .”
If you are interested in making the Wilton Centre the new home for your business contact Claire on 01642 438050 or claire . morton @ wiltoncentre . co . uk
72 | Tees Business