Photo L:R Ben Coleman, labour MP Chelsea and Fulham, Jim Stretton Managing Director, ARC, Alex Sanderson, Deputy Leader Hammersmith and Fulham Council, Mary Ryan, Vice Provost for Research and Enterprise, Imperial College London, Graham Hewson, Head of Incubation and Prototyping Services, Imperial College London, Howard Dawber, Deputy Mayor, London
Leap, a new shared lab space from Imperial Incubator located at ARC West London, has been officially opened by Deputy Mayor of London for Business and Growth Howard Dawber OBE. Leap was created in response to the significant demand for collaborative incubator space across London. It aims to help alleviate London’s shortage of early-stage labs and enable rapidly growing businesses to remain in the city as they scale.
Leap supports the ambitions of the London Growth Plan which recognises life sciences as a key driver of growth across the city. In particular it will support frontier innovation, turning scientific discoveries and inventions into commercial products and services. Leap is located in ARC’s new 150,000 sq. ft Refinery building at its Hammersmith Campus, and is part of WestTech London, the innovation ecosystem at the heart of the UK capital that is creating jobs, attracting investment and cementing the UK’s position as a leader in science and technology.
ARC’s partnership with Imperial College London’s Imperial Incubator aims to remove barriers for startup founders giving them the resources, infrastructure, and community they need to scale groundbreaking ideas into impactful businesses. Imperial Incubator has led the way with its “rent-by-the-bench” shared lab model, offering access to science-ready workspaces, key equipment and startup support on flexible terms.
To celebrate the opening, ARC West London has launched a competition offering startups the chance to secure 12 months of fully funded lab space within Leap. With the ‘Leap Lab Pass’, two winning startups will be awarded a fully funded lab bench for 12 months, complemented by support from an onsite lab manager and access to the wider benefits of Imperial Incubator’s ecosystem.
Applications for the Leap Lab Pass competition are now open, and more details can be found at arcgroup.io/west-london/leap/
Jim Stretton, Managing Director of ARC, said: “Leap brings the best of Imperial Incubator’s world-class offer to our dynamic innovation campus in the heart of Hammersmith. Leap will create opportunities for ambitious founders to accelerate discoveries that can truly change lives, whilst strengthening West London as a global location for science, technology, and healthcare innovation.”
Professor Mary Ryan, Vice Provost (Research and Enterprise), Imperial College London, commented: “Start-ups are a vital part of the UK’s innovation engine, but they are too often constrained by access to space and specialist support. Shared labs like Leap create the conditions for rigorous science to translate faster, bringing facilities, mentorship and community together so founders can turn strong ideas into real-world impact. Being based at ARC West London connects early-stage companies into the WestTech London ecosystem, strengthening the pathway for deep tech and life sciences to scale and succeed globally.”
Howard Dawber OBE, Deputy Mayor of London for Business and Growth, added: “I am delighted to launch Leap which will support innovative startups with the facilities and expertise they need to grow.
London is already Europe’s leading city for life sciences, recognised as a vital driver of growth in our London Growth Plan. The partnership between Imperial and ARC West London is a powerful example of frontier innovation, turning discoveries into jobs, investment and growth. The Mayor and I look forward to supporting the impressive group of businesses based here as we continue building a more prosperous London for everyone.”
Located on the ground floor of Refinery, Leap sits alongside ARC’s established accelerator, Motherlabs, London’s first commercial science accelerator, which provides flexible and inclusive scale-up space for growing companies.
ARC West London provides the space and support for scientists and innovators to turn early-stage ideas into commercialised products by scaling under one roof. It is already home to leading science organisations including Kesmalea, Sania Therapeutics and Epsiolgen, and is only a short distance from Imperial’s White City and Hammersmith Hospital Campuses and Imperial NHS Healthcare Trust’s Charing Cross Hospital.
These landmark collaborations strengthen ARC’s growing presence in West London, where it is building a dynamic campus ecosystem that connects world-class research, high-growth companies, and capital. Its latest partnership with Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust will see the recruitment of a cluster manager to continue to develop West London’s innovation ecosystem further enhancing WestTech London’s position as a global hub for deep tech and life sciences innovation.
