What is an Innovation District?
Innovation can be defined by many things – a new idea, a new product, a new method. This is the foundation of how an innovation district should be built. A collision of multiple forward thinking ideas that help to service or resolve a health, science or technology problem, through different urban communities and backgrounds collaborating towards one common goal, making our society a better place to live and work.
What defines an innovation district? Why does innovation happen in one hub? Why is innovation important to those in and around these districts and the city as a whole?
As defined by the UK Innovation Districts Group: “Innovation districts are urban areas with networks of knowledge-producing organisations such as universities, research bodies, teaching hospitals, cultural institutions, and knowledge-intensive businesses.”
There are a number of significant innovation districts across the UK, with twelve coming together as part of the UK Innovation Districts Group. They share a similar goal of promoting urban areas within their cities and connecting them to the wider commercial and business districts.
KQ Liverpool
Knowledge Quarter Liverpool (KQ Liverpool) is a 450-acre innovation district in Liverpool City Centre which aims to provide a connective hub for its science and technology businesses – start-ups, scale-ups and established organisations – alongside universities and NHS Trusts.
As the strategic place-shaping organisation tasked with driving forward Liverpool’s innovation district, we deliver business support programmes for startups and growing SMEs to drive collaboration and growth.
We also aim to enhance the skills base among local students and break down any barriers to entry for many in the Liverpool City Region. In doing so, we hope to curate a future pipeline of innovators within our local workforce and inspire them to make their own mark on the city region’s science and technology ecosystem.
By intervening early, we hope to nurture students’ interest in science and technology and create a lasting legacy of highly skilled employees, while also promoting an attractive destination for external talent, across a range of successful, dynamic businesses.
Innovation in motion
Statistics show that an innovation district, through the work of its partners and key stakeholders, can have a significant impact on its local community and surrounding areas.
KQ Liverpool contributes an estimated £1 billion gross added value for the City Region, with an aspiration to increase this further by 2030. It also supports more than 14,000 jobs and our objective is to help create an additional 10,000 additional roles over the next decade.
Any innovation is only as successful as its interest, investment and opportunity. For emerging talent to have a clear path for their career, we need forward-thinking science and technology businesses to provide those opportunities.
New spaces are essential to facilitate these emerging businesses and an innovation district is the perfect place to begin that journey. There are currently more than 1,200 science and technology SMEs located in the Liverpool City Region – coworking and flexible office spaces in modern facilities provide them with a perfect platform for growth.
KQ Liverpool’s spin-out development company Sciontec is bringing forward the development of new office and lab spaces in the innovation district, most notably HEMISPHERE One and Two, which will further cement the innovation district as a crucial part of the City Region.
Innovation and Regeneration
Investment in innovation is vital in establishing the district as a force for regeneration and transformational economic growth. The Liverpool City Region Health and Life Sciences Investment Zone is designed exactly for that, providing local economic growth to these areas by providing funding to advance the innovation agenda.
Having this continued support for an innovation district can allow occupiers within the space to thrive and create real opportunities for young innovators and entrepreneurs. KQ Liverpool alone has grown 20% over the past five years, with an estimated 40% of SMEs exporting their products or services to international markets. The tech sector alone has seen a 30% increase over the past 5 years, supported by investment from local and central government.
The development of any innovation district must be aligned with any current or future developments across the wider City Region as different places vie to attract the brightest and the best. In turn, having strong innovation districts around the UK, including the North, can help to diversify the workforce and attract and retain talent from different backgrounds and representations.
KQ Liverpool’s future vision will continue to encompass the concept of inclusive innovation and our work with students of all ages to understand the career paths available in the City Region. An outlined vision gives the district a common goal, one that once aligned with the local city goals, can help to accomplish.
An innovation district should become the heartbeat of any City Region looking to capitalise on the emerging talents and pioneering businesses on its doorstep. This in turn will attract international businesses, provide new career opportunities and continuously drive improvement in the health, wellbeing and prosperity of individuals across the community.
