The pharmaceutical giant GSK has announced plans to close its site in Stevenage and move approximately 1,000 staff to a new R&D facility on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus. The company, which has had a presence in Stevenage for 50 years, says the move will take place in phases, with the Stevenage site earmarked for closure in 2029.
As part of its £400m investment plans, GSK will also upgrade its existing R&D laboratories at Ware in Hertfordshire and move some employees there. The company says the Cambridge location, which is currently under construction, will support research in oncology, respiratory, hepatology, vaccines and HIV.
GSK says the new location is in the heart of the UK life sciences Golden Triangle and will accelerate its R&D and help it deliver new, competitive products.
Why is GSK moving to Cambridge?
GSK says the Cambridge Biomedical Campus will bring it closer to one of the strongest life sciences ecosystems in the world. The campus is home to more than 22,000 people working in life sciences, including many existing GSK partners and collaborations.
Those collaborations include the Cambridge Centre for Data-Driven Discovery, Cambridge-GSK Translational Immunology Collaboration, Cambridge-GSK Metabolic Science Collaboration, Cambridge Immune Ageing, the GSK-Teichmann Lab and the company's clinical unit at Addenbrooke's Hospital.
The site also houses pharma competitor Astrazeneca, alongside Addenbrooke's and Royal Papworth hospitals, with a new Cambridge Cancer Hospital under construction.
How will the move affect staff?
Staff will move in phases, and GSK says it hopes most of its staff will move with them. The company says the Cambridge site will be part of its wider UK network of collaboration with leading academic institutions and pioneering scientific organisations, including the University of Oxford, King's College London, Imperial College, the University of Manchester, Wellcome and the Crick Institute.
Tony Wood, chief scientific officer at GSK, said:
Cambridge has built one of the world's best life sciences ecosystems, with leading universities, hospitals and biotech companies.
The campus provides exceptional opportunities for collaboration.
With our existing connections and experience, we see this move as a catalyst for faster, bolder medicines discovery by accelerating the science that matters most for GSK's next wave of medicines.
Five years ago, GSK announced plans to expand its Stevenage site, with Wood saying:
Our goal is for Stevenage to emerge as a top destination for medical and scientific research by the end of the decade.
Now, the company says the pull of Cambridge is stronger, helped by the newly opened Cambridge South Station, which has direct services to Stevenage. GSK says it hopes most of its staff will move with them.
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Key Facts
- GSK plans to close its Stevenage site in 2029.
- About 1,000 staff are expected to move to Cambridge in phases.
- The company is investing £400m and will also upgrade laboratories at Ware in Hertfordshire.
- The Cambridge site is under construction on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus.
- GSK says the move will support research in oncology, respiratory, hepatology, vaccines and HIV.
