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Be part of the next industrial revolution and grow your business with access to space and space related technologies.

Space Park Leicester is an ambitious initiative that will develop a global hub and collaborative community for businesses, researchers and academia based on space and space-enabled technologies. Offering high-tech facilities and capabilities, it will be a brand new hub for the analysis and commercialisation of space-enabled data and space mission development.

Based in Leicester, near the National Space Centre – the UK’s only attraction dedicated to space – the Space Park is a partnership between the University of Leicester, the City and the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP). Space Park will also be home to the Leicester Institute for Space and Earth Observation – one of the University of Leicester’s flagship research institutes, along with first class teaching and laboratory facilities. It will also be home to a wide range of commercial partners, both large and small which will provide exceptional business partnering and collaborative opportunities.

From developing satellite technologies to enabling the detailed analysis of space-enabled data, the Space Park will help transform and launch sectors such as international communications, resource management, environmental monitoring and disaster relief.

The Space Park also sits within an Enterprise Zone, which will offer further benefits to businesses operating from it.

The Vision

Space Park Leicester will be a world-leading hub for space and space-enabled industry and will be a global leading centre for the translation of space research and Earth Observation (EO) data into commercial applications and services for businesses, researchers and academia.

Space Park Leicester complements other UK capabilities, and provides an important element of a cohesive national infrastructure. 

Our unique selling points include our research and innovation breadth; the University of Leicester’s 50+ years of working with the space industry; the focus on volume production of low-cost satellites, in addition to supporting National skills development.

• Research and development opportunities – Industry and academia working side by side with access to research and development laboratories, business hosting space and networking opportunities. With unique facilities for manufacturing constellations of small satellites, pay loads and integration with launch vehicle deployment systems, it will address low-cost access to space.

• Space-enabled data – Building on the strengths of the University’s AI ‘powerhouse’, Space Park Leicester will provide access to, and analysis of space-enabled data including ‘Big Data’ – which has the ability “to address the major challenge facing society including food security, climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss.” (UK National Space Policy 2015)

• Skills for industry – Access education and training for space and related high-tech sectors including University of Leicester courses, apprenticeships and continuing professional development.

This landmark new facility will support the creation of more than 2,500 high value jobs within the space and space-enabled sector.

The Future

The UK’s first National Space Policy was published in 2015. In it, the Government committed to growing the UK’s commercial space sector with an ambition to secure 10% of the global market, supporting 100,000 new jobs, and generating £40 billion for the economy by 2030 from a base of £11.8 billion in 2014. Today, space is regarded as critical to delivering on ambitions for UK plc.

The potential of space data is huge. Every time we go to work, turn on the TV, use our mobile phone or use the satnav system in our car – space technology enables our modern life. 

Space also connects our armed forces and humanitarian agencies around the world and delivers essential intelligence. There is an opportunity for the UK to forge a lead in this market. 

By 2030 it is expected that Space Park Leicester will have been able to deliver the following:

• Support for the proposed UK spaceports and launch capability, making the UK a global hub for new commercial space services.

• Helped the Government to capture £40bn in revenue from the space global market.

• Contributed to an increase in the sector from the current level of 35,000 UK jobs to 100,000 UK jobs.

• Built a talented and high-value space workforce, addressing a skills gap in the market and inspiring young people to train in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects.

• Capitalised on space-enabled data and services for finance, IT, energy, defence, business analytics, environment management, transport and healthcare.

• Integrated downstream application requirements with upstream space engineering – slashing time to market for low-cost satellite constellations.

• Developed the UK’s lead internationally and become known as the provider and exporter of world-leading space-enabled applications.

Next Generation

The Space Park will not just be a hub for businesses and academia with a focus on space-related industries. Research, education and training within the sector is crucial to the broader space sector within the UK and worldwide.

The Space Park will contribute to this with traditional undergraduate and postgraduate courses, and also through apprenticeships and continuing professional development opportunities.

At the University of Leicester, it is our mission to create opportunities for our students and researchers, enriching their learning experience and equipping them with employability skills. From project work to advance study, the addition of the Space Park to our portfolio will give our students the opportunity to gain invaluable experience by working with companies for real-world and commercial applications.

It is also significant that the Space Park will be situated alongside the National Space Centre and Space Academy, whose educational programmes support the University of Leicester’s courses for undergraduate and postgraduate students. This fits with the Governments agenda to develop high quality graduates in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).

The Opportunity

Space Park Leicester will be a significant global hub for businesses, researchers, academia and innovation. It will enable collaboration between the University of Leicester and the private sector creating high quality knowledge based jobs, building the skills base and contributing to economic growth and resilience of the economy.

The first phase of the project will deliver a 4800m2 facility for Earth Observation, business hosting and teaching and will open in Summer 2020. Funding for future Phases is currently being secured.